Larb Recipe

Larb is a minced meat salad from Laos and northern Thailand, dressed with lime juice, fish sauce, and toasted rice powder, and served with fresh herbs and raw vegetables. It's one of the most important dishes in Lao cuisine and is eaten as part of a meal with sticky rice, fresh cabbage leaves, and long beans. The flavor is intensely bright — sharp and sour from the lime, funky from the fish sauce, fragrant from the herbs — with the toasted rice powder adding an earthy, nutty undertone. The meat is typically pork, chicken, or beef, cooked with minimal liquid to keep it dry rather than wet. Ground meat goes into a hot pan with just enough water to prevent sticking and cooks quickly until no longer pink. The pan is removed from the heat and the dressing is added while the meat is still warm — this helps the lime juice and fish sauce penetrate the meat rather than just sitting on the surface. Toasted rice powder is a key ingredient that distinguishes larb from other minced meat dishes. Dry toast raw sticky rice in a skillet until deep golden and fragrant, then grind coarsely in a mortar or spice grinder. Add it to the dressed meat and stir through. The powder absorbs some of the dressing, thickens the sauce slightly, and adds a distinctive nutty flavor that's hard to replicate with anything else. Fresh herbs are added in large quantities — mint, cilantro, and sliced scallions are standard. Dried chili flakes provide heat. The whole salad should taste bold and assertive, with the sourness and salt in clear balance. Serve immediately — larb doesn't hold well, as the lime juice continues to cook the meat and the herbs wilt quickly.