Rice Noodle, Cucumber and Herb Salad

This refreshing noodle salad is our take on a dish that we tasted in Cambodia combined with a recipe from “The Elephant Walk Cookbook” by Longteine de Monteiro and Katherine Neustadt. Thin rice noodles are tossed with cucumber, peanuts and tons of fresh herbs, then dressed in a punchy salty-sweet fish sauce-based dressing. Dried shrimp, soaked in hot water to soften, then chopped, adds unique, umami-rich flavor and texture to the salad, but it’s an optional ingredient (the dish is delicious even without it). Rice vermicelli are thin, wiry noodles; they’re sometimes labeled as maifun or thin rice sticks; don’t confuse them with wide, flat rice sticks used in pad thai or pho. We think the salad is a perfect companion to rich, fatty roasted pork or nicely charred grilled pork skewers.