by Jane Lovett from The Get-Ahead Christmas Cook (Headline Home) Photography: Tony Briscoe
A scrumptious way to enjoy leftover turkey (or chicken for that matter). We go mad for this after Christmas, enjoying the contrast in flavours from the typical ‘big day’ fare. Very savoury in the way that satay sauce is, a little bit spicy and with crunch added for freshness, it’s pretty much a store cupboard recipe which requires no actual cooking. A nice change from mayo-heavy cold cuts, it’s a great year-round recipe, too. Highly recommended!
Serves 6-8
Ingredients
6 x 50g nests dried rice vermicelli noodles
3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into fine matchsticks
½ cucumber, cut into fine matchsticks/batons, watery seeds in the middle discarded
4 large Chinese leaves (around 200g in total), thinly sliced diagonally
4 spring onions, trimmed and thinly sliced diagonally
550g cold cooked turkey (or chicken), preferably breast, pulled into bite-sized pieces
1 red chilli (regular heat), very thinly sliced diagonally
a handful of dry-roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
For the sauce
170g smooth peanut butter
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 tablespoons sriracha sauce
juice of 1 lime
100ml boiling water
Serving suggestions (optional)
Toasted black and white sesame seeds; lime wedges; cress, watercress or rocket leaves
Method
1. Place all the sauce ingredients, except the boiling water, in a heatproof bowl, then gradually whisk in the water until a smooth sauce has formed. Set aside to cool, when it will have thickened considerably.
2. Reconstitute the noodles according to the packet instructions, drain and cool under cold water, then drain very well. Transfer to a large bowl, gently squeezing out the excess moisture with your hands as you go. Dress the noodles with the sesame oil and fish sauce; a (gloved!) hand works best.
3. Arrange the noodles over a large platter, then scatter the carrot, cucumber, Chinese leaves and half the spring onions over the top, followed by the turkey, leaving a slight margin so the other components are visible. Gradually whisk enough cold water (around 50ml) into the sauce until it coats the back of a spoon and is roughly the consistency of double cream. (It needs to coat the turkey without being too thick and claggy, but not so thin that it runs straight off.)
4. Before serving, scatter the chilli slices, dry-roasted peanuts and remaining spring onions over the top, then scatter over any of the serving suggestions (if using).
GET AHEAD
• Make step 1 up to 4 days in advance (although longer is fine), cover and chill.
• Prepare step 2 up to 1 day ahead, cover and chill. Bring back to room temp before serving.
• Prepare carrot and cucumber up to 1 day ahead, cover and chill individually
HINTS & TIPS
• Swap Chinese leaves for 200g of sprouts or cabbage, shredded or thinly sliced, or a mixture of all three.
• You can use turkey dark meat, too, but if you have a lot of turkey left over, it’s better to save brown meat for hot sauces as it doesn’t break up into shreds as breast meat can do when stirred.
Drinks tasted on air alongside the dish:
Wingman AF 0.5% pale ale & Another Round Session IPA
Comments