Vietnamese Tomato Crunch Salad
The weather this summer has been BRUTAL. The sun has been scorchingly hot, the humidity has been oppressive and the temperatures insanely high. Who feels like cooking in this?! This is where recipes like Vietnamese Tomato Crunch Salad are a lifesaver! No cooking, just slicing, chopping and squeezing a lime!
Jump to RecipeIngredients
Organize the ingredients – sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, celery, cucumber, Hungarian wax pepper or traditional green pepper, red onion or shallot, heirloom tomatoes, mixture of fresh herbs, roasted peanuts, and crispy shallots.
Dressing
Place the sugar, lime juice, fish sauce and water into a small jar. Cover and shake vigorously until combined and sugar is dissolved. Alternatively, place ingredients in a bowl and whisk until combined.
Combining the Cucumbers, Celery, Green Pepper and Onion
Place cucumbers, pepper, celery and red onion or shallot into a medium-sized bowl. Next add herbs. Lastly, drizzle ½ cup dressing over and toss salad to combine. Taste and add more dressing if desired. Season with kosher salt and black pepper.
To assemble salad, place tomatoes on a platter and then place cucumber and celery salad on top. Lastly, sprinkle the crispy shallots and peanuts on top. Season with more kosher salt and black pepper if needed. I garnished with a few sliced yellow cherry tomatoes for a bit of color.
Vietnamese Tomato Crunch Salad
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup sugar granulated
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
- 2 celery stalks thinly sliced on the diagonal
- 1 Persian or kirby/pickling cucumber halved lengthwise, sliced into half-moons
- 1 Hungarian wax Jimmy Nardello (it looks like a long hot pepper but it isn't spicy), or green bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, sliced
- 1 small shallot or a few slices of red onion thinly sliced
- 1 1/2 lb. mixed heirloom tomatoes (colorful) approximately 2 large tomatoes, either sliced or into wedges or a mixture of both
- 1 cup coarsely chopped mixed tender herbs such as dill, cilantro, and/or Thai basil
- kosher salt and ground black pepper for seasoning the salad
- 1/3 cup dry-roasted peanuts crushed or can be rough or finely chopped (I bought at Trader Joes but can be purchased at any market).
- 1/3 cup crispy shallots either store bought if they’re gluten free or make your own as I did (See NOTES section below for how to make crispy shallots)
Instructions
- Place sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, and 1 tablespoon water in a jar. Cover and shake dressing vigorously until combined and sugar is dissolved. Alternatively, place ingredients in a bowl and whisk until combined.
- Combine celery, cucumber, sweet pepper, raw shallot or onion in a large bowl. Next add herbs. Drizzle ½ cup dressing over and toss salad to combine. Taste and add more dressing if desired. Season with kosher salt and black pepper.
- To assemble salad, place tomatoes on a platter and then place cucumber and celery salad on top. Season with kosher salt. Lastly, sprinkle the crispy shallots and peanuts on top. I garnished with a few sliced yellow cherry tomatoes for a bit of color.
- Transfer salad to a platter and top with peanuts and fried shallots.
Notes
Recipe is from Bon Appétit magazine and slightly modified by me.
If you like this GFchow recipe, you may also like these other recipes. Classic Caprese Salad, Tomato, Onion, and Oregano Salad, and Tofu with Warm Soy-Sauced Tomatoes.
GLUTEN FREE DISCLAIMER
The recipes you find here are considered by me to be gluten free. However, it is up to you to make sure the ingredients you use are gluten free. Whenever possible, I will list specific brands of ingredients that I use, but always be sure to check the labels yourself to verify the item is gluten free.
