Asian Salad Recipes - Singaporean Chinese New Year Salad (Yu Shang) Recipe

Ingredients

For the garlic oil:

• 3 tablespoons cooking oil

• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

For the fish:

• 100g (4oz) salmon fillet or smoked salmon, thinly sliced

• 5cm (2in) piece of young ginger, peeled and finely shredded

• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

• 1 tablespoon lime juice

For the sauce:

• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

• 5 tablespoons dry sherry

• 2 tablespoons plum sauce

For the salad:

• 1 carrot, cut into matchsticks

• 1 white radish (mooli), cut into matchsticks

• 60g (2oz) preserved sweet papaya

• 30g (1oz) preserved ginger, thinly sliced

• 85g (3oz) pomelo segments (you could use grapefruit), torn into shreds

• 5 knfflr lime leaves, thinly sliced

For the garnish:

• 3 tablespoons ground peanuts

• 1 teaspoon five-spice powder

• 1 tablespoon dry-fried sesame seeds

Serves 4

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Method

1. First make the garlic oil: heat the oil in a wok or frying pan and fry the garlic slices until golden-brown, then set aside in the oil.

2. Prepare the fish: in a bowl, mix the fish with 1 tablespoon of the garlic oil with its garlic. Add the ginger, pepper and lime juice. Mix and set aside.

3. Make the sauce: place the remaining 2 tablespoons of garlic oil in a bowl, add all the remaining sauce ingredients, mix well and set aside.

4. Prepare the salad: mix all the ingredients in a bowl, add the fish, pour over the sauce and mix well.

5. Sprinkle over the garnish ingredients and serve.

Note: As the name implies, this salad is eaten at New Year - Chinese, of course ­as fish brings good luck and prosperity. If you don't want to eat unadorned raw fish you could substitute smoked salmon. The preserved ingredients are available in Chinese stores; you will only need a small amount, but the remainder will keep for a long time.