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Yam Wun Sen (Glass Noodle and Pork Salad)

Bangkok, Thailand – Sitting around with a friend the other day, we started talking about various pork salads when he suddenly, abruptly got up from the table.  ”I’m hungry. Let’s go eat now,” he said.  Not one to argue, I followed him upstairs in All Seasons Place to a small fluorescent-lit Northeastern-style Thai restaurant, less polished than the rest of the westernized complex.  We sat down and he proceeded to order yam wun sen (pork and glass noodle salad), nam tok muu (sliced pork with lime-fish sauce), larb muu (minced pork salad), soop naw mai (bamboo shoot salad), gai toht (fried chicken), som tom (papaya salad) and khiaw niaw (sticky rice). The last three items aside, I was in for a little pork salad 101.  Though I’d had several of the dishes on their own and certainly recognized a familiar flavor, I didn’t realize that the yam wun sen, nam tok muu, larb and soop naw mai all had (more or less) the same splendid dressing of fish sauce, lime juice, chilies, mint, shallot and roasted rice powder.  Of course each dish, varied in the flavors and textures of their main ingredients – the bamboo was softer, the sliced pork had a chewier texture and earthier flavor, the milder minced pork and more dominated by the dressing, and the silky glass noodles were a nice contrast to the crumbly bits of pork.  Of course there’s no way to go wrong with one of these dishes, but perhaps best to order one, unless you’re up for a lesson in repetition. 

Nam Tok Muu (Grilled Marinated Pork in Lime-Fish Sauce Dressing)

Larb Muu (Minced Pork Salad) and Soop Naw Mai (Bamboo Shoot Salad)