Thai-style Turkey Glass Noodle Salad

This Thai-style Turkey Glass Noodle Salad recipe will bring fresh zip to your leftover Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey by adding glass noodles, lime juice, chili peppers and fish sauce, turning it into an Asian specialty.

I learned how to make this salad from a Burmese friend who was my close neighbor when we lived in a small oilfield town in Brazil. I didn’t know any better so I assumed it was a typically Burmese recipe. Turns out that Burma, Vietnam and Thailand, among others, all claim it. Here in the US, most people seem to think of it as a Thai dish, hence my title. 

Ma Toe’s version starts with ground pork that she fries really crispy. And in addition to the dried shrimp, she also puts in some boiled shrimp for added protein. It’s one of our favorite things so I make a great big bowl and we eat it for several days. 

When we lived in Malaysia, occasionally I’d make it to take along to a school lunch or potluck, replacing the pork with ground chicken so even the Muslim students or my Muslim friends could enjoy it. It was delicious with either addition and just as good with shredded turkey.

If you are looking for creative ways to repurpose leftover turkey, you might want to try my Brie cranberry turkey quesadillas, my turkey cranberry Camembert muffins, or my own personal favorite turkey pot pie.  Make sure you scroll down to see what other holiday leftovers my Sunday FunDay friends are transforming into other wonderful dishes. 

Thai-style Turkey Glass Noodle Salad

Turkey is an excellent addition to glass noodle salad, a worthy and delicious use of leftovers. True confession: I actually poached boneless turkey breast to make this dish because I couldn’t wait for leftovers. 

Ingredients

For the salad:

8 oz or 227g bean thread or glass noodles (not rice sticks!)

1 packed cup or 200g shredded, leftover turkey 

1/2 chopped or 30g green onion tops

1/2 cup or 25g chopped cilantro, leaves and fine stems. (Discard hard woody stems.)

2 tablespoons dried shrimp

For the dressing:

1/4 cup or 60ml fresh lime juice

1 onion, sliced thinly

2 bird chilies, chopped

1/4 cup or 60ml fish sauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar

Method

Soak the glass noodles in cool tap water to soften for about 10 minutes.

Drain the water and put the noodles in a heatproof bowl. Pour boiling water over the noodles and leave for about 1 minute. Drain and rinse thoroughly with cool water. Set aside. 

Put the sliced onions and chopped chilies in a bowl with the lime juice and set aside while you make the rest of the dressing. 

Use a mortar and pestle to pound the dried shrimp into powder.

Combine the fish sauce and sugar in a small bowl. Stir till the sugar dissolves. Add the sweetened fish sauce to the lime juice and onions. Stir to combine.

Pour the dressing over your drained bean thread noodles in a large bowl. Toss to combine.

 

Tip: I find that the bean thread noodles don’t toss very well whole so I use my clean kitchen scissors to cut them up a bit. Or you can use your clean hands to mix the other ingredients into the noodles. 

Add in the green onion tops, cilantro and shrimp powder and toss to combine again. 

Mix in the shredded turkey. 

Taste for seasoning and add a little more fish sauce if more salt is needed. This salad just gets better as it hangs out in the refrigerator so it’s great to make ahead and chill until you serve. 

Enjoy! 

If too many leftovers are the bane of your existence after a big holiday meal, let us help you out. Check out these Sunday FunDay recipes that will transform your leftovers into new dishes your family will love.

• Chatpata Leftover Rice Paratha from Sneha's Recipe
• Savory Bread Pudding from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Thai-style Turkey Glass Noodle Salad from Food Lust People Love
• Turkey and Stuffing Quiche from Palatable Pastime
• Turkey Cranberry Sliders from Making Miracles
• Turkey Tamale Skillet from A Day in the Life on the Farm

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