Last Updated on March 13, 2020
When my vegan daughter came back from her one-week track and field training camp I surprised her with this spicy and crunchy Thai salad with millet.
Altogether I prepared 4 portions and thought that the remaining salad could be stored in the fridge for the next day. But this was not necessary, as she loved this vegetable millet dish so much that she ate alone 3 servings.
Ok, one reason might be, that she was just super hungry after an exhausting athletic week. Probably she would have eaten anything that I served her with a huge appetite. On the other hand, she could not stop to praise the salad and this has to mean something…
And I must admit, I could have eaten more than 1 portion too if there had been any left;)
Thai salad – a high fiber meal
It is probably the spicy peanut dressing that is turning this simple clean eating salad into a culinary delight. On top of that, it is a gluten-free, fiber-rich meal due to foods like red cabbage, millet and peanut butter as a good source of both soluble and insoluble fiber. You can even increase the roughage content of this meal if you bed your salad on the fiber-rich beet greens as I did.
Time to take a closer look at the nutritional value of peanut butter.
Top 3 health benefits of peanut butter
We are looking here at a clean, unsalted 100% peanut butter.
- Peanut butter contains unsaturated fatty acids that have a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system. Different studies show that a high peanut or nut consumption was associated with a reduced risk of total mortality and death due to cardiovascular diseases compared with consumption of few or no peanuts/nuts. (1) (2)
- It has a positive effect on the building of muscles, as it is quite high in protein. A 100g portion of peanut butter contains 25 grams of protein. As peanuts are actually a legume they have more protein than any other nut with levels comparable to a serving of beans. (3)
- It fairly nutritious and contains important vitamins such as vitamins B3 (niacin), B6, E, and H as well as magnesium.
Bottom line: Despite all the positive effects, peanut butter is a real calorie bomb with 54 grams of fat per 100 grams! For best weight management I recommend to eat not more than two tablespoons a day.
By the way, in the Thai salad with millet recipe, each serving contains 1 tablespoon of peanut butter.
PrintThai salad with millet
A nutrient-dense salad
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 45
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup uncooked millet
- 2 cups red cabbage, thinly grated
- 1 cup carrots, shredded
- 2 Tsp. dried cilantro
- 1/2 cup chives, chopped (optional)
- 1/2 cup Thai peanut sauce (recipe follows)
- 1/4 cup unsalted peanuts, crushed
- some greens (e.g. beets, arugula, watercress or iceberg,
- I’ve used beets)
For the Thai salad dressing
- ¼ cup/4 Tbsp smooth unsalted, 100% peanut butter
- 3 Tbsp. Tamari soy sauce
- 1 tsp. fresh ginger, grated
- 1 Tbsp. date syrup
- 1 Tbsp. vinegar
- ½ lemon, juiced
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
Instructions
Thai salad
- In a large bowl add red cabbage, carrots, chives and cilantro.
- Once cool add millet and mix to combine.
- Set aside and make the dressing.
Thai salad dressing
- Whisk together the peanut butter and Tamari sauce in a microwave-safe bowl.
- Heat until the peanut butter is soft and easy to stir.
- Add the ginger, date syrup, vinegar, lemon juice and red pepper flakes.
- Mix to fully combine the flavors.
- Add water to thin, as needed.
- Drizzle the peanut dressing over top of the vegetable-millet mixture and toss.
- Serve on a bed of greens.
- Top with chopped peanuts.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4