Big Batch Thai Pork Salad

5 from 1 vote

Big Batch Thai Pork Salad

Dinner party, lunch meal-prep, and family-friendly, this Big Batch Thai Pork Salad is a healthy, easy way to get a flavorful meal on the table.

Prep Time30

Cook Time1 15

Total Time1 45

Course: Salad

Cuisine: Thai

Servings: servings

Author: Cassy

Ingredients

For the pork:

2 pound pork roast may use shoulder, loin, or sirloin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Chinese five spice seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons ghee
1/2 cup water

For the dressing:

1/4 cup red curry paste
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 teaspoon fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon honey omit for Whole 30

For the salad:

2 small heads romaine lettuce chopped
1/2 cucumber thinly sliced
2 carrots shredded with a potato peeler
handful fresh mint
1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped
2 red chili peppers thinly sliced
3 tablespoons white sesame seeds for garnish
2 limes cut into quarters

Instructions

For the Pork:

Set Instant Pot to 'Saute' mode and melt 2 Tablespoons of ghee in the pan.
Cut pork roast into 2 inch pieces. In a small bowl, combine salt, Chinese five spice, and garlic powder. Rub pork roast with the seasoning mixture.
Once the ghee has melted, add pork to Instant Pot and sear for 3-4 minutes per side, making sure not to overcrowd the pan.
Once pork is browned, add water, press the 'cancel' button and then press the 'manual' button and set to 75 minutes. Confirm that pressure valve is set to 'sealed.'
Once 75 minutes is up, manually release the pressure by carefully setting the pressure valve to 'venting.'
Add pork to large bowl and shred with two forks.

For the dressing:

Combine all dressing ingredients with a whisk until fully combined. Note: leftover dressing will keep refrigerated (stored separate from the salad) for up to 2 weeks.

For the salad:

For a plate-your-own setting: plate the lettuce on a large platter next to the cucumbers, shredded carrots, cucumber slices, fresh mint, chopped cilantro, chili peppers, and lime slices. Serve along side a bowl of the shredded pork, white sesame seeds, and dressing. Encourage your guests to make a salad to their own liking!
For a pre-made setting: plate the salad ingredients together and top with the shredded pork. Drizzle the dressing on top and garnish with the white sesame seeds.

Notes

This salad makes a great make-ahead lunch option! If you plan to meal prep in this fashion, I recommend storing the salad ingredients separate from the pork and the dressing. Add everything together just before serving for the best results.

Slow Cooker Version:

Proceed with steps 1-3 in a large pan. Then add remaining ingredients (increasing water to 1 cup) for the roast into your slow cooker and cook for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low. Then proceed with Step 6, and continue making dressing and salad as noted.

Nutrition