Salad shouldn’t be boring. Inspired by a Burmese ginger salad referred to as gyin (or gin) thoke, this recipe for a punchy-crunchy salad — with an assortment of seeds, legumes, fried garlic chips, shallots, chiles, and pickled ginger — is the antithesis of boring. The toppings add layer upon layer of texture and excitement to this salad. Really, who doesn’t like toppings?

As its name implies, gyin (ginger), pickled in this case, adds a refreshing punchy note to this salad. I pickled the ginger in a brine of rice wine vinegar, salt and a hint of palm sugar and then julienned the ginger and added to the salad. You can make the pickled ginger a day or two in advance and it will keep for several months.

Traditionally, roasted or fried split soybeans are included in this salad. Instead, I added baked yellow split peas. I simply simmered them in a pot of water as you normally would until tender, then drained them well, tossed them in olive oil and spices and baked them in the oven until nice and crispy. Great as a salad topping or enjoyed as a snack on their own.

As for the vegetables…shredded Napa cabbage, tomato wedges and shredded radicchio, the latter is not traditional, though adds color, crunch and a touch of pleasant bitterness.

Lastly, the dressing, a combination of fish sauce, lime juice, shallot and garlic oil, chile, and a hint of sugar for a sweet-salty-tangy-spicy combination.

Definitely not boring.

Looking for more Burmese-inspired salads? Check out this and this.

Punchy-Crunchy Ginger Salad (Gyin Thoke)

In making the salad, I wasn’t exact on the measurements, but wanted to include them as a rough guide. Feel free to add a little more or less of each as you like.
1/3 cup julienned pickled ginger (recipe below)
1/4 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds
1/4 cup baked spiced yellow split peas (recipe below)
1/4 cup roasted peanuts
1/4 cup fried garlic chips
1/4 cup fried shallots
1/4 cup fried long red hot chiles
1/2 medium Napa cabbage (about 2 cups shredded)
1/2 head radicchio, shredded
2 small-medium tomatoes, cut into wedges
Fish sauce-lime juice vinaigrette (recipe below)

Add all salad ingredients to a large bowl. Toss with dressing.

To Fry the shallots, garlic, and chiles:

1 cup oil (used grapeseed)
5-6 red shallots, thinly sliced
5-6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2-3 long red hot chiles, thinly sliced
Sea salt

Line a plate with paper towels.

Place a wide, heavy, deep-sided skillet or large, stable wok over medium-high heat. Heat the oil. Toss in a slice of shallot. As the oil heats, the shallot slice will rise to the surface. When it’s reached the surface, add the remaining shallots, carefully, so the oil doesn’t splash. Lower the heat to medium, keeping a close eye.

Stir gently and frequently with long-handled wooden spoon or spider. If the shallots begin to brown too quickly lower the heat. After 10 minutes, they should start to turn golden. Continue to cook, another 3 minutes or so, until they turn golden brown.

Use a spider to lift the shallots out of the oil. Let them briefly drain and then transfer to the paper towels. Gently separate any clumps, sprinkle with sea salt, and allow the shallots to air dry 5 to 10 minutes.

Once cooled, the shallots can be stored in a clean, dry jar (sealed tightly).

Let the oil cool and then transfer to a clean, dry glass jar. Store in a cool dry place (I used the reserved oil in the fish sauce-lime juice vinaigrette).

Repeat the same process (I used the same oil to fry the shallot, garlic and chiles), frying the garlic until golden brown and chiles until water content cooks out and crispy, noting that cooking times will vary. Always keep a close eye when deep frying. Make sure they don’t burn, otherwise they will be bitter.

Pickled Ginger

1/4 pound thinly sliced ginger, young ginger when available
1 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar

Sprinkle the sliced ginger with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Let sit for 15 minutes. Rinse with boiling water. Drain. Place in a widemouthed jar.

In a small pot, bring 1 teaspoon salt, rice wine vinegar and sugar to a boil. Stir until dissolved. Pour the vinegar over the ginger. Seal. Let stand overnight. Store in the refrigerator up to 2 months.

Baked Yellow Split Peas

1 cup yellow split peas
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon chile powder
1 teaspoon chaat masala (or other spices/spice blends of your liking)
Salt to taste, about 1 teaspoon

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Drop in the split peas and cook until tender, about 25 to 30 minutes. Drain well and pat dry.

Preheat oven to 400F. Spread the cooked split peas on the sheet pan. Toss with olive oil, spices and salt. Bake, stirring every 10 minutes until crispy, about 35-40 minutes; check after 25 minutes (interesting enough, the type of sheet pan can drastically effect the cooking time. A dark sheet pan was ready closer to 25 minute; whereas, a lighter colored sheet pan needed closer to 35 to 40 minutes).

Fish Sauce-Lime Juice Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons reserved garlic-shallot oil
Juice of 1 lime
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon palm or coconut sugar
1 Thai chile, minced

Whisk all ingredients together. Taste, adding more fish sauce or lime juice as desired.