spicy sambal shrimp with mango salad

Shrimp + mango + chilies = perfection. Shrimp paired with tropical fruit works brilliantly. Especially in this throw-together, lively meal of spicy-hot grilled shrimp served with a to-die-for vibrant and herbaceous mango salad.

Both the shrimp and the beautiful fresh salad take their inspiration from South East Asia. A definite must-have in my fridge is always sambal oelek – a South East Asian chili paste made from a variety of chilies, vinegar, garlic, a little palm sugar, maybe some shrimp paste or fish sauce. Its origin lies in the cuisines of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, but is used extensively world-wide now. I’m never without any. I put it in and on so many of my recipes – you might have noticed. It’s not as fiery hot as you’d expect though and as well as adding a lovely bit of heat to meals, it also adds a wonderful, unique chili flavor.

The sambal is used in the salad dressing and the marinade, plus I always like to serve a little extra on the side. The salad dressing does double duty as a marinade for the shrimp, cutting back on time and effort. And who doesn’t love that?!

Luscious, juicy mango pairs with fragrant mint and cilantro. Sliced crisp radishes for crunch, along with red onion, cucumber and peanuts. All tossed together in a sambal, honey, gingery sesame dressing.

Really all that’s left to do is throw the shrimp on the barbie (sounds so clichéd I know) and dinner is done!

This is the stuff dreams are made of. Okay, maybe a slight exaggeration…or is it? You’re just going to have to try for yourself and find out. Who knows, maybe between the bites of summery mango salad and succulent grilled shrimp, you might find yourself transported to some exotic Asian island (work with me here ok!). Until next time, toodles xo.

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spicy sambal shrimp with mango salad

2017-06-13 10:30:14

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Ingredients

MARINADE
1/4 cup sambal oelek (Asian chili paste)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon fish sauce, optional
1 tablespoon minced peeled ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
20 large, raw shrimp (prawns), peeled and deveined leaving tails intact
4 to 5 metal (or bamboo) skewers
SALAD
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 large, ripe mango, peeled and sliced
1/2 English cucumber, thinly sliced
1/2 small red onion, cut into thin wedges
6 to 8 small radish, halved or sliced
1/2 cup mint leaves
1/4 cup cilantro (coriander) leaves
1/3 cup chopped roasted peanuts

Instructions

To make the marinade: Combine sambal, garlic, honey, fish sauce, ginger, soy and sesame oil in a small bowl. Pour 1/2 of the mixture into a blender (this will become the dressing for the salad). Add shrimp to the remaining mixture in the bowl; mix well to coat. Thread shrimp onto skewers. Cover and set aside in the fridge.
To make the dressing for the salad: Add vinegar and canola oil to sambal mixture in blender; blend until smooth. Cover and set aside in the fridge.
Just before serving: Toss mango, cucumber, onion, radish, mint & cilantro together in a medium bowl. Drizzle with salad; toss to combine. Sprinkle with peanuts.
Cook shrimp on greased grill of a hot barbeque, 2 to 3 minutes each side until they turn pink – do not overcook. Serve shrimp with mango salad. Serves 3 to 4.
Note: As an alternate, you could marinate and grill the shrimp the night before & toss them into the salad, cold, just before serving.

Notes