Lee's Singapore Slaw

1 hours 0 mins Prep Time

1 hours 30 mins Cook Time

Written By

Robin Winship

Lee's signature Singapore Slaw is one of those emblematic Toronto dishes that if you don't know, you probably aren't attuned to the city's food scene. Plastered all over social media, you've either tried the dish yourself or have been meaning to cross it off your 'must-eat' list. Comprised of meticulously julienned vegetables, crispy fried taro and vermicelli and doused in a salted plum dressing -- this dish is a masterful work of art. If you can manage to hunt down all the necessary ingredients or simply make do with what you have, this dish is the perfect excuse to brush up on your knife skills!

For starters, you might want to learn how to julienne before you dive into this one.

Take a look at how Susur Lee creates this signature dish:

If you give this recipe a shot, make sure to post up your creation on Instagram and tag @tastetoronto and @lee_restaurant!

Ingredients

Singapore Slaw

1 pickled red onion (recipe below)
1 ½ cups salted plum dressing (recipe below)
2 green onions, both white and green parts, julienned
2 oz. rice vermicelli, broken into 3 pieces
3 oz. taro root, julienned
1 large English cucumber, julienned
1 large carrot, peeled and julienned
1 small jicama, peeled and julienned
1 cup daikon, peeled and julienned
2 large Roma tomatoes, peeled, seeded and thinly sliced
4 tsp toasted sesame seeds
1 tbsp pickled ginger
Thyme or parsley leaves
6 tsp crushed roasted peanuts
4 tsp edible flower petals
4 tsp fennel seedlings
4 tsp purple basil seedlings
4 tsp coriander seedlings
4 tsp daikon sprouts
4 tsp fried shallots

Pickled Red Onion

1 red onion
1 cup rice wine vinegar
1 cup water
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black peppercorns
¼ tsp fennel seeds
1 bay leaf
1 sprig thyme

Salted Plum Dressing

1 cup salted preserved plum (pitted)
½ cup rice wine vinegar
1 tsp mirin
1 tsp Dashi (Japanese cooking stock)
3 tbsp sugar
½ tsp fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
¼ tsp sea salt

Directions

Pickled Red Onion

4 Steps

Step 1

Peel and julienne red onion and set aside in a medium bowl.
Step 2

In a small saucepan, bring vinegar and water to a boil.
Step 3

Season with salt, peppercorns, fennel seeds, bay leaf and thyme; continue boiling for another 5 minutes.
Step 4

Pour mixture over onion while hot and let sit for 1 hour.

Salted Plum Dressing

2 Steps

Step 1

In a blender, combine plum paste, vinegar, mirin, Dashi, onion, oil, sugar, ginger and salt.
Step 2

Puree until smooth.

Assembly

8 Steps

Step 1

Soak green onion in very cold water to keep crisp.
Step 2

Meanwhile, heat large pot of oil. When temperature reaches 400 degrees Fahrenheit, deep fry taro root, half the amount at a time, for 2 minutes until crisp and light gold in colour.
Step 3

Remove slices from oil, place on paper towel and lightly salt.
Step 4

At same temperature, quickly deep fry vermicelli, half at a time, for 2 seconds, or until they curl. Remove vermicelli from oil, place on paper towel and lightly salt.
Step 5

Remove julienned green onion from bowl and drain. Divide vermicelli equally between 4 plates and arrange green onion, cucumber, carrot, jicama, daikon, tomatoes and pickled red onion around noodles.
Step 6

Top with fried taro root.
Step 7

Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds and crushed peanuts over each salad.
Step 8

In a small bowl, combine edible flower petals, seedlings, sprouts and fried shallots. Sprinkle flower-sprout-shallot mixture on salad and serve with salted plum dressing alongside.