This easy Thai Shrimp Salad comes together in less than 15 minutes making it a great option for a weeknight meal. It’s light, refreshing, and oh so tasty with that amazing chili-lime vinaigrette!
Do you love Thai food? Then you’ll love the flavors in this salad! This definitely isn’t a traditional Thai dish, but it’s inspired by all the yummy flavors of Thai cuisine. We’ve topped ours with shrimp, crispy wonton strips, water chestnuts, sliced almonds, and freshly chopped cilantro. You can mix and match yours however you’d like. We’ve finished it all with two dressings: a Thai-inspired chili-lime vinaigrette and peanut sauce.
This salad isn’t just healthy, it’s easy to make too! To make it even easier, you could always cheat a little and buy the pre-cooked shrimp and toss it in the vinaigrette to make it even faster, but I do prefer freshly cooked shrimp myself.
What kinds of salad greens work best in this recipe?
The photos and video included with this recipe show this salad with mixed leafy greens. You can use mixed Asian greens, spinach, chopped romaine, or other similar mixes.
Should I leave the shrimp tails on or take them off?
Let’s face it, shrimp are ugly without their tails. Now, that being said, if you aren’t vain about your food, remove them! It definitely makes any shrimp dish much easier to eat. Food photographers, tv foodies, and restaurants often leave tails on for aesthetic purposes, but you don’t have to fall into the same trap. It takes the same effort to remove them before cooking as it does while serving, but the rest of the people at your dinner table may appreciate it if the tails were already removed for them.
Can I use pre-cooked shrimp?
We prefer freshly cooked shrimp as they cook so quickly, but you can also use pre-cooked shrimp as a matter of convenience. Be sure to season them with salt and pepper and drizzle the marinade/dressing on them.
If you like this recipe, you may be interested in these other delicious salad recipes:
My Other Recipes
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
Easy Thai Shrimp Salad
Ingredients
Shrimp
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 pound jumbo shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Chili Lime Vinaigrette
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves crushed garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Salad
- 4 cups mixed salad greens
- 2 cups roughly chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 1/2 cup sliced water chestnuts
- 1/2 cup wonton strips
- 1/3 cup peanut sauce
Instructions
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large heavy skillet over high heat. Add in the shrimp and season with salt and pepper. Stir, cooking until the shrimp turns pink which should take about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl, make your vinaigrette by combining all ingredients in the bowl and whisking together.
- Pour half of the vinaigrette over the shrimp and toss the shrimp to coat.
- Place the Asian greens and cilantro into a large salad bowl. Add in shrimp, cilantro, almonds, and water chestnuts. Add wonton strips just before serving.
- Drizzle over remaining vinaigrette as well as the peanut sauce. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
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Jane says
Sounds wonderful and I’ll love to try it. Do you have a good peanut sauce recipe or do you buy it already prepared?
Olivia says
Good Morning. This recipe/dish looks amazing! I am definitely going to try it tonight. I have a huge lemon tree… Would it be OK to substitute the lime juice with lemon juice? Thank you
Rachel Farnsworth says
Yes, it’s an acceptable substitute.