Pomelo salad

Lunch | Thai

Prep time: 15 min Cook time: 12 min Servings: 4

I fell in love with this dish after tasting it at a Thai restaurant on the Sunshine Coast called Samila Gaeng. It's Thai name is Yam Sam O but also known as Pomelo Salad. If you ever see it on a Thai menu, make sure you order it, or follow this recipe and make it at home.

The freshness and citrus of the pomelo mixed with mint and a hit of spice with the chilis, it’s hot and cool at the same time. Dried shrimp add a funky umami depth, and toasted coconut and peanuts give the salad crunch and richness. And it has that incredible blend of salty, sweet, sour and spicy.

Most of the prep time goes into segmenting the pomelo and dry-frying the aromatics. The dried shrimp and dried chillies are each fried separately and ground to a powder, which is what gives the salad its characteristic flavour and heat. Once everything is prepped, the assembly takes a couple of minutes. Dress it and serve immediately. It doesn’t hold well once it’s dressed.

Ingredient Notes

Pomelo: Pomelo is a large citrus fruit native to Southeast Asia. It has thick green or pale yellow skin and a sweet, mildly bitter flesh that is less juicy and less acidic than grapefruit. The segments are large and pull apart easily once you remove the thick rind and membrane. To check for ripeness, look for fruit that feels heavy for its size and gives very slightly when pressed. If you can’t find pomelo, pink or ruby red grapefruit is the closest substitute, though it will be more tart.

Dried shrimp: Dried shrimp are small, intensely flavoured shrimp that have been salted and sun-dried. They add a deep, savoury umami note to the salad that fresh shrimp can’t replicate. You’ll find them in the Asian aisle at most supermarkets or at Asian grocery stores. They’re sold in small bags and keep well in an airtight container. If you can’t find them, you can omit them and add a small extra splash of fish sauce to the dressing instead.

Palm sugar: Palm sugar is made from the sap of palm trees and has a softer, more caramel-like sweetness than white sugar. It’s sold in solid discs or blocks that you grate or shave before use. You’ll find it at Asian grocery stores and increasingly at supermarkets. Light brown sugar is a workable substitute in a pinch, though the flavour won’t be quite as round.

Equipment

Chopping board
Chef’s knife
Large bowl
Medium frying pan
Small frying pan
Spice grinder or mortar and pestle

Ingredients

1 pomelo
2 tsp peanut oil
2 shallots, finely sliced
¼ cup dried shrimp
1 lemongrass, white part only, finely shredded
2 kaffir lime leaves, finely shredded
¼ cup peanuts, toasted, chopped
⅓ cup shredded coconut, toasted
½ cup mint leaves
1 long red chilli, finely sliced
Dressing
3 dried birdseye chillies
1 tbsp palm sugar, grated
2 tbsp lime juice
3 tsp fish sauce

Directions

Remove rind and pith from pomelo and segment. Break up into small pieces and transfer to a large bowl.
Heat oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Cook shallots for 5 minutes, stirring, until softened and starting to brown. Set aside to cool.
Dry fry the shrimp in a small frying pan on medium high, until fragrant. Transfer to a spice grinder and blend or pound in a mortar and pestle.
For the dressing, dry fry the chillies in a small frying pan over medium heat until starting to colour. Transfer to a spice grinder and grind to a powder. Measure out ¼-½ tsp of powder (depending on your spice heat preference) then reserve the rest for another use.
Pound the palm sugar in a mortar and pestle with the lime juice, until dissolved, then stir in fish sauce and the chilli powder.
Pour dressing over pomelo, then add shallots, shrimp powder, lemongrass, lime leaves, peanuts, coconut, mint and chilli.
Toss until well combined, then serve immediately.

Recipe notes

Chef Tips

Remove every bit of pomelo membrane

The membrane surrounding each pomelo segment is bitter and chewy. Cut the top and bottom off the fruit, slice down the sides to remove the thick rind and pith, then pull the segments apart and peel the membrane off each one individually. Take your time here. Any membrane left on will add bitterness that throws off the dressing balance. Break the flesh into small pieces rather than leaving it in whole segments so the dressing can coat every bit.

Dry-fry each aromatic separately

The dried shrimp and dried chillies each need different heat levels and times, so fry them in separate pans. The shrimp need a medium-high heat until fragrant. The chillies need a medium heat until they just start to colour. Don’t rush either step and don’t let them burn. Grind each to a powder separately before adding to the salad. This prep can be done well in advance.

Storage

This salad is best eaten immediately after dressing. The pomelo releases juice and the textures soften if it sits. You can prep all the components up to a day in advance and store them separately in the fridge: segmented pomelo, cooked shallots, shrimp powder, chilli powder and dressing all keep well on their own. Assemble and dress just before serving.

FAQs

What can I use instead of pomelo? Pink or ruby red grapefruit is the closest substitute. It has a similar texture but is more tart and more bitter than pomelo, so you may want to increase the palm sugar in the dressing slightly to compensate. Regular grapefruit works but is even more bitter. Avoid navel orange as it’s too sweet and too juicy.

Can I make this vegetarian? Yes. Leave out the dried shrimp and replace the fish sauce with soy sauce or a good vegetarian fish sauce alternative. The salad loses some of its umami depth without the shrimp but it still works well. Add a small extra squeeze of lime to the dressing to keep it bright.

Can I prepare this in advance? You can prep every component in advance but don’t dress or assemble it until just before serving. Store the pomelo, shallots, shrimp powder and dressing separately in the fridge for up to a day. Once it’s tossed together, the pomelo softens and the coconut and peanuts go soft quickly.