Thai Shrimp Salad | Pla Goong | พล่ากุ้ง

This Thai Shrimp Salad known as Pla Goong features grilled shrimp tossed with a spicy and sour dressing and loads of fresh herbs. It's light and refreshing, yet packed with flavor!

My Thai in-laws introduced me to this grilled shrimp salad years ago, when my husband and I were still dating. We were visiting their house and my father-in-law set me to work in the kitchen, washing mint leaves and finely chopping lemongrass. Once the salad was assembled, I took a bite and was blown away by its bold flavors. It was spicy, sour, slightly sweet, and incredibly fragrant. The grilled shrimp provide substance while the fresh herbs and vibrant dressing create an explosion of Thai flavors.

Since that initial taste of Pla Goong, I've made it countless times. This is a Thai salad that I keep coming back to because 1) it's quick and easy to make, 2) the ingredients are easy to find, and 3) the flavors really are incredible. Here's everything you need to know to make this delicious Thai shrimp salad from the comfort of your own home!

What is Pla Goong?

Pla Goong is an incredibly flavorful Thai salad of shrimp tossed in a spicy and sour dressing and mixed with lots of fresh herbs. In Thai, Pla is one of the four major categories of salads (the other three categories being Yum, Tam, and Larb/Nam Tok). This category of salad utilizes lime juice to "cook" or "cure" the protein, much like a ceviche. These days, however, due to food safety concerns, the proteins of salads in this category are usually cooked prior to mixing with a lime-juice based dressing.

In Thai, Goong means shrimp. So this salad features shrimp as its main ingredient. Many recipes nowadays call for the shrimp to be boiled before mixing them with the lime-based dressing. However, my father-in-law prefers to grill the shrimp for this salad. And I have to agree, grilled shrimp really stand out in this salad.

Salad Ingredients

• Shrimp: Fresh shrimp should be peeled and deveined, then coated with a little mild-flavored oil and grilled until they are cooked through. You'll want to have all of the other ingredients of the salad prepared before cooking the shrimp so that they are still hot when you add them to the salad.
• Lettuce: In Thailand, you'll often find this salad with lettuce served on the side rather than included in the salad. However, a mild-flavored lettuce like butterleaf or romaine makes a nice bed upon which this salad is set.
• Mint: Mint provides one of the main flavors of this salad. Smaller leaves can be left whole, but bigger leaves should be coarsely chopped or torn.
• Cilantro: Cilantro leaves should be plucked from the stems and coarsely chopped.
• Lemongrass: As you will be eating the lemongrass in this salad, it needs to be sliced extremely thinly. Use only the tender bottom ⅓ of the lemongrass and slice at an angle to achieve the thinnest, most tender bites of lemongrass possible.
• Shallots / Red Onion: Shallots and/or red onions add an aromatic freshness to the salad. You can use one or both, depending on what's available to you. They should be sliced into thin strips.
• Makrut Lime Leaves (optional): Some recipes for Pla Goong call for the addition of makrut (kaffir) lime leaves to help enhance the citrus flavor. If you have them readily available, feel free to add them, sliced finely.
• Thai Chili Peppers: Thai chili peppers should be sliced finely. You can add as many or as few as you like, depending on your spice tolerance. One Thai chili goes a long way. My Thai in-laws often add upwards of five Thai chilis to this salad, ensuring that every bite is spicy.

Dressing Ingredients

The dressing for salads in the Pla category are often very much like those in the Yum category, featuring lime juice, fish sauce, Thai chilis, and perhaps some sugar. Salads in the Pla category also often include Thai roasted chili paste.

• Lime juice: Freshly squeezed lime juice adds a potent tartness to the dressing.
• Fish sauce: Fish sauce adds the salty umami to help balance out the sour, sweet, and spicy flavors. Any good quality fish sauce will work. Different brands of fish sauce have different levels of saltiness, so you may need to taste and adjust the quantity used.
• Palm sugar: Palm sugar adds a needed sweetness to balance the other flavors. If you are starting with a hard block of palm sugar, you can use a sharp knife to shred it very finely before using. You could alternatively microwave it with a few drops of water to make it more pliable before using.
• Roasted chili paste: Roasted chili paste, known as Nam Prik Pao in Thai, adds a nicely balanced mild spice to the dressing.

Instructions

This Thai shrimp salad is quick and easy to put together. The main time commitment is finely slicing all of the fresh herbs. After that, it's a simple matter of mixing the dressing and quickly grilling the shrimp before tossing everything together.

1. Start by mixing the dressing ingredients together. If you are starting with a hard block of palm sugar, you may need to finely slice it or microwave it with a few drops of water to help it dissolve into the other ingredients.
2. Next prepare all of the herbs. The lettuce, cilantro, and mint can be coarsely chopped or left whole if the leaves are small enough. The thick outer layers of the lemongrass should be peeled away and only the tender, bottom ⅓ of the stalk should be used. Slice the lemongrass, shallots, red onion, and red peppers very finely. If you are using makrut lime leaves, use a chiffonade cut to slice them finely.
3. Peel and devein the shrimp. Brush a bit of oil on both sides and then grill them until they're cooked through (2-3 minutes, depending on the size of your shrimp).
4. Combine the herbs and lettuce in a large bowl and add the dressing. Start by adding half of the dressing, then add more depending on your taste preferences. Finally, add the grilled shrimp while they are still hot and toss everything together. Enjoy immediately!

Serving Suggestions

This Thai shrimp salad is often served as part of a larger Thai meal. The fresh ingredients and bold flavors provide a nice contrast to heavier dishes such as curries or stir fries. It can also simply be served with a side of jasmine rice, if you prefer.

Storage

This grilled shrimp salad is best enjoyed immediately after it's served. If there are leftovers, they can be saved in the refrigerator for several hours. Any longer than that, and the dressing will soak into the fresh herbs and make them wilt / turn brown.

The salad ingredients can easily be prepared ahead of time. Simply prepare the dressing and fresh herbs and store in the refrigerator, separately. Before you're ready to serve, grill the shrimp and toss everything together.

This shrimp salad is great if you're running low on time, but want a dish that's fresh, vibrant, and packed with Thai flavor. With mint, cilantro, lemongrass and a nicely balanced spicy, sour, and sweet dressing, you can eat your greens and still enjoy an explosion of Thai flavors in each bite!