Watermelon Salad with Toasted Rice and Tamarind Lime Dressing

by Sabrina Ghayour, featured in Persiana One

Published by Mitchell Beazley

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Introduction

What the Thai don’t know about creating explosive flavour combinations simply isn’t worth knowing. I love making savoury salads that include fruit, and watermelon feels like the natural choice for a Persian girl like me, but this salad is somewhat influenced by my love of Thai salads and the addition of toasted rice really makes it. This is fantastic with grilled meats and fish.

For US measures and ingredient names, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.

As featured in

Persiana One

Image of Sabrina Ghayour's Watermelon Salad — Photo by Kris Kirkham

Ingredients

Serves: 3-4

Metric U.S.

1 teaspoon uncooked basmati rice or jasmine rice
500 grams watermelon (peeled, any seeds removed and cut into small bite-sized pieces)
1 large or 2 small long banana shallots (thinly sliced into rings, or 1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced into half moons)
3 spring onions (thinly sliced diagonally)
generous handful of mint leaves (rolled up tightly and thinly sliced into ribbons)
about 10 grams fresh coriander (finely chopped)

FOR THE DRESSING

finely grated zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lime
1 tablespoon caster sugar
1 heaped teaspoon pul biber chilli flakes
1 teaspoon tamarind paste
1 teaspoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon olive oil
Maldon sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon uncooked basmati rice or jasmine rice
1lb 2 ounces watermelon (peeled, any seeds removed and cut into small bite-sized pieces)
1 large or 2 small long banana shallots (thinly sliced into rings, or 1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced into half moons)
3 green onions (thinly sliced diagonally)
generous handful of mint leaves (rolled up tightly and thinly sliced into ribbons)
½ ounce cilantro (finely chopped)

FOR THE DRESSING

finely grated zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lime
1 tablespoon superfine sugar
1 heaped teaspoon pul biber chile flakes
1 teaspoon tamarind paste
1 teaspoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon olive oil
soft sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Watermelon Salad with Toasted Rice and Tamarind Lime Dressing is a guest recipe by Sabrina Ghayour so we are not able to answer questions regarding this recipe

Heat a dry frying pan over a medium-high heat, add the rice and toast, shaking the pan occasionally, for 2 minutes, or until the rice is deep golden brown, but not burnt. Remove from the heat and leave to cool. Using a pestle and mortar, grind the toasted rice as finely as you can until you reach the consistency of coarse sand grains. Don’t be tempted to use a spice or coffee grinder, as it will produce way too fine a powder.
For the dressing, whisk the lime zest and juice and sugar together with a fork in a small bowl until the sugar has dissolved. Then add the remaining dressing ingredients, season with salt and pepper and mix well.
Mix all the salad ingredients together in a large bowl, pour the dressing over and mix again until evenly dressed. Sprinkle with the toasted rice and serve.

Heat a dry frying pan over a medium-high heat, add the rice and toast, shaking the pan occasionally, for 2 minutes, or until the rice is deep golden brown, but not burnt. Remove from the heat and leave to cool. Using a pestle and mortar, grind the toasted rice as finely as you can until you reach the consistency of coarse sand grains. Don’t be tempted to use a spice or coffee grinder, as it will produce way too fine a powder.
For the dressing, whisk the lime zest and juice and sugar together with a fork in a small bowl until the sugar has dissolved. Then add the remaining dressing ingredients, season with salt and pepper and mix well.
Mix all the salad ingredients together in a large bowl, pour the dressing over and mix again until evenly dressed. Sprinkle with the toasted rice and serve.