7 hours ago, Maison Rustique said:I haven't heard of tea leaf salad either! Guess I need to Google!
Well, let me enlighten you! To quote a favorite movie line: My mind has been expanded!
Oh my goodness, this is good stuff. Here's a preview.
The place, Shwe Myine Thu, is only a couple of miles away from my current camping spot. Given the high recommendations of @Shelby and @patti , how could I not go out to get some tea leaf salad to try? I bundled up -- for a Texas norther, that is, not for Minnesota -- and drove over.
The outside has picture menus of various dishes they offer, though I didn't see tea leaf salad listed.
Inside, the place was clean and quiet.
I ordered my salad and had a lot of time to enjoy the artwork and other picture menus.
At some point I realized that I was looking through an interior window at an attached Burmese market -- not the Asian market on the east side, but another one attached at the west side. The entrance is so far from the restaurant that the place must be huge!
I did not go over there. I already have Condiment Creep problems. However, I couldn't resist this packaged mix in the restaurant:
The description / ingredients were posted below the stack of containers:
I asked about what to do with it, and was told that it's a good addition to rice. I think she said to fry it first, although the ingredient list suggests it's already been fried once. What the heck. It was only $5. I have now added it to my pantry goods, and will be pleased to get recommendations for use.
Eventually my lunch was ready. The young woman behind the counter was very apologetic for the wait, and said it's always best to call ahead. I really didn't mind; I'd been enjoying looking around and even watching some of the activity in the attached market that I was resolutely avoiding.
So, here's what I opened when I got home:
See the garlic cloves and little chiles there in the corner? I've saved them for later. I didn't think the salad needed any help. One of you who knows about tea leaf salad can tell me how I should have used them.
If flavors could be drop-dead gorgeous, this would fit the bill! Crunchy. Very crunchy. A llttle tart, a little spicy heat, a LOT of flavor. I think I can identify some lime juice and fish sauce, but I'm not sure what else is there.
I'm not sure what-all is in it. Fried peanuts are easily identifiable. There's something very finely sliced that might be cabbage of some variety. Tomatoes, of course. Some other crunchy things too. What is this green thing? It's very crunchy, and has some heat.
Wuf. This is wonderful! I'm glad I followed patti's and Shelby's recommendation! It was only $8, and I'll be getting 2 meals out of it. The gentleman you can see sitting with his back to me suggested I eat this over rice. Maybe so, but I ate it straight this first time around.
If you're ever in Amarillo, I recommend you look these folks up:
@patti. @Shelby, and anyone else who has a recipe for tea leaf salad, please share it. I've been looking online and the recipes are all over the place as far as procedures and ingredients.
