• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
Umami Days

Umami Days

Meaty with a dash of veggies

  • Pick a meal
    • One Bowl Meals
    • Breakfast
    • Lunch / Dinner
      • Appetizers
      • Salads
      • Soups
      • Main Courses
      • Side Dishes
      • Sweets
    • Snacks
    • Drinks
      • Summer drinks
      • Cold weather drinks
      • Cocktail hour
  • Pick your protein
    • Chicken, duck & turkey
    • Meat
    • Seafood
    • Eggs
    • Mushrooms
    • Tofu
    • Vegetables
  • Pick your carb
    • Rice & grains
    • Noodles
    • Bread
  • Newsletter
  • Sidebar
    • Kitchen
    • Dining
    • Edible Garden
    • Food Tales
  • Newsletter sign-up!
  • Recipe index
    • By Meal
      • One Bowl Meals
      • Breakfast
      • Lunch / Dinner
        • Appetizers
        • Salads
        • Soups
        • Main Courses
        • Side Dishes
        • Sweets
      • Snacks
      • Drinks
        • Refreshing summer drinks
        • Cold weather drinks
        • Cocktail hour
    • By Main Protein
      • Chicken, duck & turkey
      • Meat
      • Seafood
      • Eggs
      • Mushrooms
      • Tofu
      • Vegetables
    • By Carb
      • Rice & grains
      • Noodles
      • Bread
  • Sidebar
    • Kitchen
    • Dining
    • Edible Garden
    • Food Tales
  • About
  • Privacy
  • Copyright
  • Contact
Seafood Vegetables Lunch / Dinner Salads

Shrimps, bean sprouts and watermelon salad

Published: 11.21.2019 » Last updated: 06.26.2022

A light salad bursting with fruity flavors and the surprising tang and umami of Vietnamese fish sauce.

Shrimps, bean sprouts and watermelon salad

It is not, strictly speaking, a Vietnamese dish. I must say though that this shrimp and watermelon salad was inspired by the popular Vietnamese pomelo salad which can be prepared with shrimp or chicken. And the dressing we used is as Vietnamese as Vietnamese can be. Mixed fish sauce.

Vietnamese mixed fish dipping sauce

After attending a cooking class in Ho Chi Minh City where we learned to make Vietnamese mixed fish sauce properly, we were literally using the mixture in ways far beyond dipping cooked food in.

I had braised lamb shanks in it before (amazing results!), but using it as a salad dressing has always been among our favorite ways to enjoy it. For example:

Ramen, cucumber, soy sauce quail eggs, mushrooms, pickled vegetables and shrimps equals Asian cold noodle salad

Asian cold noodle salad

Blanched ramen, cooked shrimps, lightly fried eryngii mushrooms, pickled vegetables and soy sauce quail eggs are drizzled with Vietnamese mixed fish sauce to make this Asian cold noodle salad.

Get the recipe u0026rarr;Asian cold noodle salad

Although the title of this recipe says it’s a salad with shrimps, bean sprouts and watermelon, those three aren’t the only components of the salad. Romaine lettuce, mandarin orange segments and cubes of feta complete the mix.

Shrimps, bean sprouts and watermelon salad

Connie Veneracion
It is imperative that you serve the salad immediately. The watermelon will start expelling its juice the moment it gets in contact with the citrus juice in the dressing. So, right after tossing everything together, serve at once.
Shrimps, bean sprouts and watermelon salad
Print Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 5 mins
Total Time 15 mins
Course Salad
Cuisine Asian Fusion
Servings 5 people

Ingredients
  

  • 20 medium shrimps - peeled and deveined
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 6 cups seedless watermelon cubes
  • 1 cup mandarin orange segments - (available in jars and cans)
  • 4 generous handfuls mung bean sprouts - rinsed and drained well
  • 1 small head Romaine lettuce - torn into bite-zise pieces, rinsed and passed through the salad spinner
  • 1 cup cubed feta

For the dressing

  • ¼ cup mixed fish sauce

Instructions
 

Cook the shrimps

  • In a frying pan, boil enough water to reach a depth of one inch. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  • Spread the shrimps in the boiling water and cook for two to two and a half minutes per side.
  • Scoop out the shrimps and dry on a bed of paper towels. Cool.

Toss the fruits and vegetables

  • In a large mixing bowl, toss together the watermelon cubes, mandarin orange segments, bean sprouts, lettuce and feta.
  • Add the shrimps. Toss to distribute.
  • Drizzle in the mixed fish sauce and toss a few more times.
  • Serve immediately.
Print Pin Recipe
Keyword Salad

More Seafood, Vegetables

Japanese-style soy honey fish fillets

Japanese-style soy honey fish fillets

Fish head, vegetable and yogurt chowder

Fish head, vegetables and yogurt chowder

Japanese-style gingered chicken, shiitake and bok choy soup

Gingered chicken, shiitake and bok choy soup

Fish and chips with vinegar for dipping

Fish and chips

Cheese-stuffed and bacon-wrapped okra

Cheese-stuffed and bacon-wrapped okra

Kani salad

Kani salad

Newsletter department

  • #18 Cooking for Lent
    03.23.2023
    A few readers have emailed asking me to post recipes for Lent, and I tell them there is NO need for NEW recipes. Instead, they should try digging into the seafood, mushrooms and tofu recipe archives.

Sidebar

Connie Veneracion, Chiang Mai, 2020

Hi, I’m Connie!

Welcome to Umami Days, a blog that advocates innovative home cooking for pleasurable everyday dining. No trendy diets, no food fads and definitely no ludicrous recipe names like crustless quiche, noodleless pho or chocolate lasagna.

  • About
  • Recipes
  • Privacy
  • Copyright
  • Contact
Chicken, tomatoes and thyme in olive oil, with pot of thyme in background

Chicken, tomatoes and thyme in olive oil

Kung Pao tofu

10-minute Kung Pao tofu

Kung pao chicken

Kung pao chicken

Macaroni salad with ham and cheese, carrot, celery, crushed pineapple, pickle relish and mayo

Macaroni salad with ham and cheese

Udon and pork with chili peanut sauce garnished with scallions and sesame seeds

Udon and pork with chili peanut sauce

Potatoes and green beans salad

Umami Days is powered by Apple, Canon, coffee & one bowl meals · Copyright © 2023 Connie Veneracion · All Rights Reserved