Chilli salmon noodle salad with lime and herbs

Hello everyone, I had a fantastic day yesterday doing a Spanish Gourmet Safari http://www.gourmetsafaris.com.au/page/sydney_safaris.html. We went all over Sydney and tasted all sorts of beautiful Spanish foods and drinks including jamon, olives, cheese, chorizo, sherry (which I had never tasted before but once I tried the Pedro Ximinez...I was hooked). I knew the day was off to a good start when we began in a tiny cafe in Kings Cross with beautiful thick Spanish hot chocolate and churros. From there we went to Yagoona, then back to McMahons Point, then Glebe and finally into the Spanish quarter in Liverpool street in the city. Who knew there were so many sources of fabulous Spanish things? We finished mid afternoon with some tapas and sangria. I have to say the potatoes in alioli were the best I have ever eaten. All in all an outstanding day, so if you like your Spanish I highly recommend you do this tour, it is excellent.

Now for a completely different taste I'm giving you a recipe for a Thai style salad which truly stands the test of something delicious and easy at the end of a long, hard day. I left work on Friday night at 7.00 and was determined that I was going to make this salad. Only problem was that I had left my shopping list at home and didn't know what I needed for it, and by that time of night my shopping options were limited. I took a punt that delicious magazine, from which the recipe comes (in fact it's this month's cover recipe so you can see it), is sold in Woolies and happily found it there. I bought a copy and then whipped around the shop and managed to obtain all the ingredients that I didn't already have at home. (Including buying the salmon at Woolies which I have never done before but I was surprised at how good and fresh it was, just like buying from a real fishmonger!)

So you can imagine, by the time I got home it was around 8.00. Well, I had dinner made within 15 minutes and it was beautiful. So hopefully a good one for you too when you're in the same situation - just remember to take your shopping list with you!

Have a happy week. Love from Jane xx

Chilli salmon noodle salad with lime and herbs

Serves four

What you need:

• 500g salmon fillet
• 1-2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce
• 1 tablespoon sunflower oil, or a light olive oil
• 200g rice vermicelli noodles
• 1/2 punnet cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 avocado, roughly chopped
• 1 small red chilli, seeded and thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup each mint, coriander and Thai or regular basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons salted peanuts, roughly chopped

Dressing (I found the given quantities perfect but you can adjust to suit your taste)

• 2 tablespoons lime juice, plus lime wedges to serve
• 2 tablespoons each fish sauce and sweet chilli sauce
• 1 tablespoon light olive oil
• 2 teaspoons caster sugar

What you do:

1. Coat the salmon fillet in the sweet chilli sauce.
2. Heat the oil in a frypan over a medium-high heat.
3. Sear the salmon for 2-3 minutes each side, leaving it a little pink in the middle.
4. Place the salmon on a plate, cover loosely with foil and leave to rest while you make the salad.
5. Prepare the noodles by pouring boiling water over them, then drain and set aside.
6. Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients in a large bowl until the sugar dissolves.
7. Add the cherry tomatoes, avocado and sliced red chilli to the dressing and toss gently to combine.
8. Add the noodles and herbs to the salad and gently toss again.
9. Divide the noodle salad among four plates.
10. Break the salmon into chunks with your fingers and gently tuck the pieces into the salad.
11. Scatter with the peanuts and serve the salad with the lime wedges.