Thai Turkey Salads

I adapted this idea from a Thai turkey burger recipe I had seen a while back.  Since we usually eat burgers without the bun, I figured I would just turn this into a different recipe for a salad.  I certainly put my own spin on it and it turned out great.  Salads are Alex’s favorite thing … and not so much mine … so I try to keep them as interesting as possible. 

First, heat a pan with olive oil spray over medium high heat.  Add 1 pound of ground turkey and cook until browned.  Drain any remaining fat from the pan and add in 2 sliced green onions including the green and whites.  Also, add in a handful of matchstick carrots and continue to sauté until slightly tender.  Season the mixture with salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Next, make the slaw to top the salad.  To do this combine ½ bag of slaw mix with a bunch of chopped cilantro.  Add in ½ cup of chopped peanuts to the slaw and set aside. 

For the Thai sauce, combine ½ cup of sweet chili sauce (the same sauce used to make bang bang shrimp salads), ¼ cup rice vinegar, ¼ cup light coconut milk, 2 tbs brown sugar, 2 grated garlic cloves, 1 tbs peanut butter (reduced fat), 1 inch knob of grated ginger, lime juice (of 1 lime), and 1 tsp of soy sauce in a sauce pan.  Stir the sauce until combined and heated through.  The sauce will thicken after a few minutes. 

Assemble the salad by forming a base with a bed of mixed spring lettuce.  Add a handful of slaw mix scattered on the lettuce.  Add a cup of the meat mixture in the center of the salad and top with as little or as much of the peanut Thai sauce as you’d like.  Top the salad with chopped cilantro and a few chopped peanuts.  The salad is very flavorful and incredibly filling.  Alex loved it which is always a plus and it made me enjoy eating salads more.