Spicy Fishmint Salad
This is a recipe featuring fishmint (Houttuynia cordata), also known as the chameleon plant, or yu xin cao. I grow it in my garden, having gotten a bit from my parents since it’s an attractive ground cover. It’s used often in southern Chinese and Vietnamese cooking, noted for the “fishy” flavor of the leaves. I happen to think it smells like fishy cilantro, but not everyone enjoys the flavor. Depending on where you are, you may be able to forage for it.
It’s been slow to establish (although I hear it can be very invasive), so I haven’t had enough to really experiment with it in terms of food. I decided to sample a bit of it to see if I would use it in the future. The verdict–I think a salad like this would go great with Vietnamese cuisine, the fishy flavor muted with the sauce, on top of a spiced lemongrass grilled chicken, or beef satay. Maybe mixed in with a spicy cold noodle. I don’t know how it’s flavor profile plays when it’s cooked, but if you stick around, I’ll eventually find out.
Of note, when harvesting, utilize the young new growth leaves for tenderness. The rhizomes that grow horizontally are the ones you’ll be wanting to collect since each plant has one main root going down vertically, with rhizomes (zhe’ergen) growing out from segments. If you can’t pinch snap it, it’s too tough.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup shredded young fish mint leaves
- 1/4 cup chopped fishmint rhizomes
- 4 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fried chili crisp or chili oil (I like Lao Gan Ma brand) but you may be able to use different Asian chili sauces
- 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
- 1 tablespoon chopped scallions
- Combine all the ingredients and toss shredded fishmint leaves and rhizomes. Chill for 10 minutes before serving.