Ingredients
-
200g smoked or raw salmon cut into thin strips
-
300g carrots, shredded into julienne sticks
-
300g white daikon, shredded into julienne sticks
-
100g red cabbage, finely shredded
-
100g white cabbage, finely shredded
-
200g jicama
-
200g cucumber, peeled and deseeded and cut into julienne sticks
-
100g red beetroot, finely shredded into julienne sticks
-
2 stems spring onions, finely shredded into 5 cm lengths1
-
1 red or yellow or orange bell pepper, cut into fine strips
-
A few sprigs coriander leaves
-
100g peeled pomelo segments
-
100g mango (not too ripe), cut into thin segments
-
100g mandarin segments
-
100g young papaya, finely shredded
-
50g chopped roasted peanuts
-
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
-
1 tbsp toasted sunflower seeds
-
50g crystallised ginger – In Singapore and Malaysia coloured crystallised ginger in red, green and white is used to add more colour into the salad
-
100g crispy crackers or fried wonton wrappers cut into strips.
Dressing
- 80g Nonya Secrets sweet chilli sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- Pinch of white pepper
- Pinch of five spice powder
- 3tbsp water
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Serves 6 – 8
Preparation
Arrange the salad ingredients on a large round platter. You could select some or all the above suggested vegetable and fruit ingredients. The idea is to incorporate lots of colour and variety. Arrange them into sections so that diners can identify what the ingredients are.
Mix the dressing up and transfer into a jar.
To Serve: The master of ceremony adds the nuts and seeds, white pepper and 5-spice powder and dressing over the salad and proclaims the significance of each ingredient as he adds them. The crispy golden nuggets are finally added on top to symbolise more wealth and prosperity as it tumbles on the dish. Diners are expected to stand up at this point and everyone tosses the salad as high as possible with a pair of chopsticks to mix all the ingredients together and shouts out “huat ah” or “lo hei”, in Chinese dialects meaning “rise”. It does create a bit of a mess but the performance is fun and creates family togetherness and bonding. It is also delicious and fresh and the sweet sour flavours from the dressing makes this a delectable dish.
