May 7, 2008: Watercress salad

May's calendar dish of the month is a light but vibrant and intensely flavoured watercress salad from Laos. As with most salads, there's little more involved than a quick vege slice and dressing shake. Substance and that little extra prep come from hard-boiled eggs.

This salad was playing a losing game from the start - I can't handle hard-boiled eggs any more than Michael enjoys raw tomato. We took a courtesy bite each of our respective nemeses before playing swaps. Otherwise the dressing and fresh herbs were most agreeable, so there may be a future adaptation of this salad that Michael and I could both enjoy.

Watercress salad

2 eggs
2 tomatoes
12cm cucumber
1 tablespoon fresh mint
1 tablespoon fresh coriander
225g watercress
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon peanuts, toasted

Put the eggs on to boil for 8-10 minutes, until hard.

While they're boiling, quarter the tomatoes, slice the cucumber into rounds and chop the herbs. Toss these ingredients in a bowl with the watercress.

When the eggs are done, allow them to cool before peeling and chopping into quarters.

Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar, then whisk in the sesame oil and soy sauce.

Arrange the eggs over the top of the salad and pile the nuts in the centre. Pour over the dressing and serve immediately.