Salmon salad with hot and sour dressing

Ingredients

• 500 gm piece of salmon, skin on, pin-boned
• 60 ml (1/4 cup) fish sauce
• 35 gm (1/4 cup) macadamia nuts
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 cup each (loosely packed) mint and coriander
• 4 red shallots, thinly sliced
• 1/2 lemongrass stalk (white part only), very thinly sliced
• To serve: steamed jasmine rice, roasted chilli flakes and ground roasted sticky rice (see note)
• Hot and sour dressing
• 1 small garlic clove, crushed
• 1 coriander root, scraped
• 1 small red chilli, finely chopped
• 15 gm crushed light palm sugar, or to taste
• 60 ml (1/4 cup) lime juice, or to taste
• 60 ml (1/4 cup) fish sauce, or to taste

Instructions

1. 1

   1.: Preheat oven to 180C. Combine salmon and fish sauce in a non-reactive container, turn to coat and set aside at room temperature while you roast the nuts.

2. 2

   2.: Spread macadamia nuts on an oven tray and roast until light golden (5-7 minutes). Set aside to cool briefly, then coarsely chop.

3. 3

   3.: Remove salmon from fish sauce and pat dry with paper towels. Heat coconut oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat, add salmon and cook, turning once, until golden and skin is crisp (2-3 minutes each side). Set aside in pan, covered; it will continue to cook to medium-rare (3-5 minutes).

4. 4

   4.: Meanwhile, for hot and sour dressing, pound garlic, coriander root and chilli with a mortar and pestle to a smooth paste, then add remaining ingredients and stir until sugar dissolves. Adjust seasoning with sugar, fish sauce and lime juice.

5. 5

   5.: Toss herbs, shallots and lemongrass in a bowl with dressing. Break up salmon and skin into bite-size pieces, add to salad with macadamia nuts and serve on steamed rice scattered with roasted chilli flakes and roasted rice.