This week I was looking back through some of my family’s old favorite recipes and came across this Thai Grapefruit Salad. I stopped everything I was doing and went straight to the grocery store and made it that night. It’s that good. This used to be a recipe we made all the time, but for some reason we haven’t had it in AGES. But, no worries, this recipe has been revived and will be made often, once again.

This salad is so refreshing and goes well with such a variety of things. I really like to pair it with other Thai dishes, or Vietnamese dishes, but it could go well with many other things as well. The grapefruit is bathed in the yummiest of Thai flavors – mint, lime juice, fish sauce, chili flakes – and is then topped with toasted coconut, peanuts, and more fresh mint! I won’t even be offended if you don’t finish reading this post because you’re already on your way to the grocery store. No apologies needed.

Also I must mention that this recipe is so easy and so fast. It can be thrown together in a jiff and will definitely impress whoever has the blessing of eating it.

Speaking of Thai food, for many years now I’ve wanted to go to THAILAND. Anyone backing me up here? First of all, and maybe the most obvious, the food. Can you imagine walking the streets of Thailand and getting cheap, delicious Thai food? Curry and Pad Krapow and Mango Sticky Rice, WOW. Lets go right now. Then in addition to that there’s the beautiful beaches and the amazing animals. I just want to ride an elephant, okay? So if anyone sees deals on flights to Thailand, let me know, pronto. Lets go.

But in the mean time, I’ll just be making this salad, dreaming that I was in Thailand. I think it will suffice!

THAI GRAPEFRUIT SALAD

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 C bite-sized chunks of peeled grapefruit
• 1/4 C shredded coconut
• 3 tbsp crushed salted roasted peanuts
• 1/2 C chopped fresh mint
• 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp sugar  (may need more, depending on the grapefruit. adjust to taste.)
• 1 tbsp finely chopped shallots
• 1/4 tea dried red chili flakes

DIRECTIONS:

Peel the grapefruit and put into a bowl. You can cut out the sections with a knife if you like, but the big red grapefruit that are fairly easy to peel work best.

Toast the coconut until lightly brown and a little crispy in small pan on medium heat and set aside in a bowl. Crush the peanuts and set aside. Chop the mint and set aside.

Mix the lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, shallots, and chili flakes in a bowl. Use small bowls or cups for serving the salad. Just prior to serving, drain off the excess juice from the grapefruit and pour in the lime juice mixture and chopped mint and stir well. Scoop into bowls/cups and sprinkle the toasted coconut and crushed nuts over the top.

Timing is pretty important with this recipe. Get everything ready and do the last bit of mixing right before you eat the salad. If you mix it too soon, the mint goes limp and the coconut and peanuts get soggy.

ENJOY!