In Thailand, Summer rice salad is defined in two ways: Kao ob sapparod or Kao pad sapparod (sapparod means “pineapple”). It’s a delicious dish, simple and very popular. It has Chinese origins and in my country we introduced a fried variation (we use vegetable oil but with extra virgin olive oil it’s tastier). In Italy you can call it “salad”, as it is served cold, with fruits, vegetables and walnuts. It’s the perfect summer dish.
Kao pad sapparod
Recipe for 2 people
INGREDIENTS
100 g diced pineapple
1 spring onion
1 garlic clove
150 g cooked and peeled prawns
300 g steamed jasmine or basmati rice*
salt to taste
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 tablespoon of fish sauce
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
50 g peppers
50 g peas
30 g grapes
50 g toasted cashew nuts
1 tablespoon yellow curry
1 tablespoon seed oil
Maria Manasidchthani, a chef from Thailand. Here's her Facebook profile
METHOD
Divide the pineapple and remove the inside pulp using a knife and leaving the case intact (including the stem). Cut the pineapple into dices.
In a large pan, sauté the garlic, the chopped spring onion, the peppers and peas, and add the yellow curry and the (steamed) rice.
Add the soy sauce, the fish sauce, the sugar and then the diced pineapple. Mix well until the rice is finely mixed then leave to cool.
Finally add prawns, toasted cashew nuts and grapes to the fried rice. Serve in the pineapple case and garnish with some crispy pancetta.
*you have three ways to steam the rice:
-Use a
Rice Cooker, a special (fast and easy to use) machine.
-Classic cooking: pour the rice and three cups of water into a casserole tin. Cover with a lid and leave on the stove for 10 minutes. Continue to mix while the rice heats up. Quickly bring to the boil then lower the flame to a very low level and continue to cook for about 15 minutes.
-Microwave: Pour the rice into a bowl, add 4 cups of water and cook at 750 W for 20 minutes (10 minutes without the lid, then mix the rice and continue to cook for the remaining 10 minutes with the lid on).
