Thai Smoked Trout Salad

The sweet smoked trout plays nicely off the tangy green (raw) mango and the nutty toasted rice. As with many Thai dishes, as much attention is paid to the topping as the dish itself. Here we feature basil, mint and red chilis. Also key to Thai dishes, this one looks stunning on the plate.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 2 Thai eggplants, sliced into 1/2-inch (1 cm) rounds
• 4 shallots, unpeeled
• 4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
• 1-inch (2.5 cm) piece unpeeled galangal
• Vegetable oil, for drizzling
• 1 tablespoon (15 mL) uncooked white sticky rice (also called sweet rice or glutinous rice) or jasmine rice
• 1 medium or 2 small green mangoes, peeled and grated or cut into 1/8-inch (3 mm) julienne
• 15 fresh Thai basil leaves, roughly torn
• 15 fresh mint leaves, roughly torn
• 2 long red bird’s eye chilies, seeds removed, finely chopped or very finely sliced
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) fish sauce
• 7 ounces (200 g) smoked trout fillet, flaked
• Vegetable grilling basket

Directions

1. Preheat the grill to medium.
2. Drizzle the eggplants, shallots, garlic, and galangal lightly with the oil and place in a vegetable grilling basket. Grill the vegetables until charred and tender. Set aside.
3. Toast the rice in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly until golden, about 4 to 5 minutes. Allow to cool. Grind to a powder using a spice grinder (or coffee grinder set aside for spices) or a mortar and pestle.
4. Peel the shallots and garlic and chop coarsely, and transfer to a large bowl. Slice the galangal (you don’t have to peel it) and coarsely chop the eggplant, and add to the bowl. Add the mango, Thai basil, mint, and chilies, and stir to combine. Transfer to a serving platter.
5. In a small bowl, mix together the lime juice and fish sauce. Drizzle over the salad. Add the toasted rice and mix. Top the salad with the flaked trout.