Headnote

This salad is built on contrast: silken noodles, clean seafood, sharp dressing, and the quiet richness of salmon roe. The vegetables are kept crisp, the seasoning bright, and the final assembly deliberately light so each element remains distinct. It should taste precise, cool, and complete.

Recipe essentials

Dish category: Seafood salad

Cuisine or origin: Southeast Asian-inspired

Course type: Main course

Yield: 1 serving

Serving size: 340 g

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 8 minutes

Total time: 28 minutes

Difficulty: Moderate

Equipment

Medium saucepan

Mixing bowl

Fine strainer

Sharp knife

Cutting board

Salad bowl

Small bowl

Tongs

Ingredients

Salad

Glass noodles, 60 g

Shrimp, peeled and deveined, 70 g

Squid, cleaned and sliced into rings, 50 g

Salmon roe, 15 g

Lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces, 35 g

Tomato, cut into wedges, 40 g

Carrot, julienned, 20 g

Red onion, thinly sliced, 15 g

Peanuts, lightly crushed, 15 g

Chili dressing

Fish sauce, 18 g

Lime juice, 18 g

Chili, finely chopped, 4 g

Garlic, finely minced, 4 g

Sugar, 6 g

Method

1. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a steady boil. Add the glass noodles and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, just until supple and translucent. Drain immediately, rinse briefly under cold water, and drain again thoroughly. The noodles should be tender but still resilient, with no starchy residue.

2. Return the saucepan to the heat and bring fresh water to a gentle simmer. Add the shrimp and squid separately or together, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, just until the shrimp turn opaque and the squid is barely firm. Drain at once and cool quickly. The seafood should remain moist and clean-tasting, never rubbery.

3. In a small bowl, combine the fish sauce, lime juice, chili, garlic, and sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves and the dressing tastes sharply balanced, with salt, acid, heat, and a restrained sweetness in equilibrium.

4. In a salad bowl, combine the glass noodles, shrimp, squid, lettuce, tomato, carrot, and red onion. Add enough dressing to coat the ingredients lightly and toss with tongs until the noodles are evenly seasoned and the vegetables remain crisp.

5. Transfer the salad to a serving plate or shallow bowl. Spoon the salmon roe over the top in a neat line or small cluster, then finish with the crushed peanuts. The surface should look composed, with the roe intact and the peanuts providing a final dry crunch.

Plating and serving

Arrange the salad in a compact mound with the seafood visible at the surface. Keep the salmon roe as the final accent so its briny richness remains distinct against the bright dressing and cool vegetables. Serve immediately, while the noodles are supple and the lettuce still crisp.

Professional notes

The noodles must be drained well; excess water will dilute the dressing and flatten the dish.

Dress lightly at first. The salad should glisten, not pool.

Add the salmon roe only at the end so its texture remains pristine.