Lahpet Thoke (Fermented Tea Leaf Salad) #SundayFunday

This week the Sunday Funday bloggers are sharing salad recipes. Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm is hosting and wrote: "Summertime is here. Share salads that can be served as a main course or as a side to whatever you are serving up on these hot summer days."

Stacy of Food Lust People Love, Sue of Palatable Pastime, Rebekah of Making Miracles, and Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm coordinate this low-stress group; we only participate when we are inspired. This week, as I already mentioned, Wendy is hosting and picked a theme of salads. Here's the #SundayFunday line-up for our virtual celebration of summertime salads. What a salad bar!

• BYO Chef Salad Bar by A Day in the Life on the Farm

• Fennel, Red Cabbage, Goat Cheese, & Citrus Salad by Karen's Kitchen Stories

• Keto Coleslaw with Keto Thousand Island Dressing by Sneha's Recipe

• Lahpet Thoke (Fermented Tea Leaf Salad) by Culinary Cam (you're here)

• Marinated Fig and Mozzarella Salad by Cook with Renu

• Pasta & Sweet Potato Salad by Mayuri's Jikoni

• Pasta Salad by The Mad Scientist's Kitchen

• Spicy Mojito Cucumber Salad by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice

• Tenderstem Broccoli (Broccolini) Potato Salad by Food Lust People Love

• Vegetarian Greek Salad with Chickpeas by Amy's Cooking Adventures

BONUS: Watch Me Make Mason Jar Salad Dressings

Though the Culinary Cam YouTube channel is on a brief hiatus, I am sharing a video we did last year for six homemade salad dressings. It's a simple formula of acid to oil that gives you so much flexibility to match the flavors of whatever you have in your salad. Enjoy and get creative!

BONUS: A Virtual Salad Bar

I also wanted to share some links to previous salads I have posted. So. Many. Salads... With homemade or easy vinaigrettes, here are my Kale Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette, Crisped Chanterelle Salad with Bacon Vinaigrette, and Bitter Greens Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

For some heartier salads that are great sidedishes for a summer barbeque, check out some of my salads made with potatoes, including my Schwäbischer Kartoffelsalat (German Potato Salad), Freshly Dug Potato Salad with Peashoot-Cashew Pesto, Patatas Aliñadas (Spanish Potato Salad with Fish).

And then there's the whole set of 'other salads'. Think corn, cheese, and fruit. You can go to my Seared Summer Squash Topped with Fresh Corn Salad, Winter Caprese, and Dragonfruit, Mango, Jicama, & Corn Salad.

Lahpet Thoke (Fermented Tea Leaf Salad)

My recipe for today's event is an easy, bitter salad from Myanmar, formerly Burma. The only thing is that you need to ferment the leaves for a day, so do that part the day before you plan to serve it.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup organic dried green tea leaves, loosely packed

• 1 cup bitter greens, thinly sliced (I used Belgian endives)

• 1 Tablespoon garlic paste

• 2 Tablespoons finely chopped ginger root

• juice from one organic lime

• generous pinch of salt

• 3 Tablespoons peanut oil

• 4 to 5 Tablespoons roasted peanuts

• 3 to 4 Tablespoons sunflower seeds

• organic flower(s) for garnish, optional (I used a rose)

Procedure

Fermenting the tea leaves

Place the tea leaves in a bowl. Pour 2 cups of hot water over the dried tea leaves. Let soak until the leaves have expanded and are quite soft, approximately 10 minutes.

Drain, pick through the leaves, and toss out any stems or hard bits. Place the leaves in the bowl of a food processor along with garlic paste, ginger, lime juice, and salt. Pulse for 30 seconds until it forms a thick paste. Place in a bowl, cover, and allow to ferment in a dark cupboard at least overnight. To Serve

Place the sliced greens on a serving plate. Arrange the peanuts and sunflower seeds on top of the greens. Mix the peanut oil into the tea leaves and spoon them over the top of the salad. Garnish with a flower, if you want to!

Just before serving, toss the fermented tea leaves into the greens. Serve immediately.

That's a wrap for my #SundayFunday salad offering. The group will be back next week with gluten-free desserts to inspire you. Amy of Amy's Cooking Adventures is hosting. Stay tuned.