Friday 31 July 2015

Fusion- No Confusion!

Insalata di Vermicelli di Riso con Olive Cinese, Pomodorini & Salsa Thailandese
Rie Vermicelli Salad with Chinese Olives, Cherry Tomatoes & Thai Sweet Chili Sauce

 

Quick, light, refreshing, easy and totally different are all words that I love to be connected with my food- how about you?

This was a spur of the moment, improvised little dish- and what do expect on a Friday evening? Necessity breeds creativity after all... And I had nothing left in the fridge and was in need of a feed! Thankfully, just 20 minutes later, this was ready and I was happy! Just like you will be too!!


 

Basically, if you can boil water, you can prepare this dish! There is no real cooking involved... Which is one more reason to love it... As well as the great flavor it has of course!

You may or may not be familiar with Chinese, preserved olives... If you are, you will surely love them... If you're not... You better get down to the Asian supermarket real fast and fall in love with them! And whilst you are at it, you might want to pick up another couple of simple ingredients if you don't already have them at home... Read on and find out!



For one good portion of this salad, you will need, surprise-surprise, 1 portion of rice noodles (brown in this case), 5-6 cherry tomatoes, a couple of slices of ginger, about 1 tablespoon of preserved Chinese olives, fresh mint, parsley and basil and a little soy sauce for seasoning, sesame oil for dressing and sweet Thai chili sauce for extra flavor.

Simple stuff that you should always have at home... Trust me!


 

Tossed together, you will have the refreshing Mediterranean flavor of tomato, parsley and basil, combined with the rich flavor of the Chinese olives, which are such a pleasant change to our own and the sweet Thai chili sauce... You'll be surprised at how well they go together!

 

The only cooking you will need to do is to boil a couple of slices of ginger in some water for around 10 minutes, to infuse it with flavor, before adding the vermicelli to soak.

Whilst they soak and "cook", you will have more than enough time to slice up your tomatoes and chop your herbs... That's all the work there is to it!


 

The Chinese olives that you can find in the jar at your Asian supermarket are usually a combination of both the olive itself and the leaves, chopped up, shredded and fermented a little... They are mild, smooth-tasting... A little hard to describe... But I have yet to encounter one person who didn't instantly fall in love with them! Trust me... You will too!

 

After 10 minutes or so, the vermicelli will be good and can be drained off. Whilst they are still hot, add about a tablespoon of the chopped olives, the finely chopped mint and parsley and some sesame oil. Stir through thoroughly and season with a little soy sauce.


Make sure everything is thoroughly mixed, so that all of those great, subtle flavors get combined and soaked-up into the noodles.

 

Serve with the chopped Tomatoes and finely sliced basil, add a good drizzle of Thai sweet chili sauce to taste... And prepare yourself for how good something so simple can taste!

 

You can enjoy healthy meals, sill have fun and not have to feel you are missing out on anything... It's easy when you know how!

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