Vegetarian
20130210-pomelo-cabbage-jicama-salad-vegan-1.jpg

[Photographs: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt]

About the author: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt is the Chief Creative Officer of Serious Eats where he likes to explore the science of home cooking in his weekly column The Food Lab. You can follow him at @thefoodlab on Twitter, or at The Food Lab on Facebook.

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About This Recipe

Yield: Serves 4 to 6
Active time: 15 minutes
Total time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons juice from about 2 limes, plus more to taste
  • 2 tablespoons palm or brown sugar, plus more to taste
  • 1 medium clove garlic, minced
  • 2 teaspoons soy sauce
  • 1 small red Thai bird chili, finely sliced (optional)
  • Thai-style dried crushed red pepper, or red pepper flakes, to taste, plus 3 to 4 whole dried red chilies, if desired
  • 1 pomelo, segments removed and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 jicama bulb, peeled and cut into 1/2- by 1/2- by 2-inch batons
  • 2 cups shredded napa cabbage
  • 1 cup picked mung bean sprouts
  • 1/4 cup crushed roasted peanuts
  • 1/2 cups roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems
  • 2 tablespoons store-bought or homemade Thai-style fried shallots

Procedures

  1. Combine lime juice, sugar, garlic, soy sauce, fresh chili (if using), 1 teaspoon dried chili, and whole dried chilies (if using) in a large bowl and whisk until sugar is completely dissolved. Add pomelo, jicama, cabbage, sprouts, peanuts, and cilantro. Toss to combine, then season with more chili, lime juice, and sugar if desired. Transfer to a serving platter, sprinkle with shallots, and serve.