Pork-and-Rice Noodle Salad with Lemon-Coconut Dressing

The texture of rice noodles and pork is impervious to the Thai-inspired dressing. In fact, the longer this sits, the better its flavor. This one-fork main-dish salad requires no separate packing.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups)

Ingredients

• 1  (8-ounce) package uncooked rice sticks (rice-flour noodles) or vermicelli
• 1  (3/4-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed
• 2  tablespoons  grated peeled fresh ginger, divided
• 1  teaspoon  salt, divided
• 1  garlic clove, minced
• 1  teaspoon  vegetable oil
• 1 1/2  cups  light coconut milk
• 2/3  cup  fresh lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
• 2  tablespoons  sugar
• 1  jalapeño pepper, minced
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh mint
• 1/4  cup  chopped peanuts

Preparation

Cook rice sticks according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and rinse with cold water, and drain well. Place cooked noodles in a large bowl.

Slice pork lengthwise, cutting to, but not through, other side. Open halves, laying pork flat, and rub with 1 tablespoon ginger, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and garlic. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork; sauté for 7 minutes on each side or until done. Cool slightly. Coarsely chop pork; add to noodles in bowl.

Combine the coconut milk, juice, and sugar in a small saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer until reduced to 1 1/2 cups (about 10 minutes). Stir in 1 tablespoon ginger and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Remove from heat; cool.

Add the coconut dressing, jalapeño, mint, and peanuts to noodles; toss well to combine. Chill until ready to serve.

Note: To keep the peanuts fresh, toss them with the salad just before serving. Seed the jalapeño for a milder salad.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

450 (25% from fat)

Fat:

12.7g (sat 5.6g,mono 3.7g,poly 2.2g)

Protein:

25.5g

Carbohydrate:

60.3g

Fiber:

1.1g

Cholesterol:

55mg

Iron:

2.3mg

Sodium:

677mg

Calcium:

60mg