Shan Tomato Chicken Lettuce Cups with Crispy Rice Noodles

Method

1. Pour the frying oil to a depth of 3 cm into a completely dry 18 cm · 3× pot and heat on medium heat to 180 °C (a strand of noodle should puff up white instantly). Break the vermicelli into small bundles and fry in the number of batches shown: as soon as each puffs, after 3–5 seconds, flip it and lift out onto kitchen paper. It takes about 3 min in all. The oil can spit, so add the noodles carefully and never leave the pot unattended. Let the used oil cool completely before disposing of it.

   Add in this stepOil for frying 400 mlThin dried rice vermicelli 30 g

   medium heat

2. Finely chop the shallots and garlic and cut the chicken into very small 5 mm pieces. Heat the peanut oil in a 24 cm pan on medium-high heat, fry the shallots, garlic, turmeric and paprika for 1 minute, then add the chicken and stir-fry for 4 min, breaking it up with a spatula, until crumbly and no longer pink.

   Add in this stepPeanut oil (or neutral oil) 1½ tbspShallots (or a small onion) 2Garlic cloves 3Ground turmeric ½ tspPaprika 1 tspBoneless chicken thighs 200 g

   medium-high heat

3. Add the chopped tomatoes, soy sauce and sugar and stir-fry on medium heat for 5 min until the liquid has almost gone and it looks like a moist crumble (leftover liquid makes the cups soggy). Turn off the heat and squeeze in the lime juice.

   Add in this stepTomatoes 1½Light soy sauce 2 tspSugar 1 tspLime 1

   medium heat

4. Wash the lettuce leaves, shake them completely dry and lay them out cup side up. Dice the cucumber into 5 mm cubes, slice the spring onion, pick the coriander and mint leaves and roughly crush the peanuts.

   Add in this stepRomaine or butterhead lettuce leaves 8Cucumber ½Spring onions 2Coriander (cilantro) 10 gMint 6 gRoasted peanuts 30 g

5. Put a handful of crispy noodles in each lettuce cup, add a spoonful of tomato chicken and scatter with cucumber, herbs, peanuts and chilli. Wrap and eat by hand right away, before the noodles soften.

   Add in this stepChilli flakes (to taste) to taste