Yoyo’s recipes
One of our missions is to raise awareness of Lao cuisine.
Our food is known for its fresh ingredients and where simplicity meets bold and vibrant flavours. From the aromatic laap, a minced meat salad seasoned with fresh herbs and lime, to the comforting lao-style pho and the perfect balance of sweet, sour, spicy, and salty flavours with dishes like tam mak hoong, a spicy green papaya salad.
In the same way almost every Lao dish is served with sticky rice (khao niao), you can also add Yoyo Laos Sauce, as a dip or added to taste.
I hope you will enjoy diving into the rich culinary heritage of Laos and bring these authentic tastes to your table.
PORK LAAP
(Serves 2 as a main dish)
I’m going to let you into the secret of making this much loved salad from Laos, it’s all about the roasted rice!
As with many lao dishes, i’ve given estimates on the ingredients here, but add/remove for your own tastes - especially the number of chillis!
What you’ll need
500g mince pork
2 fresh limes
1 medium red onion
1-5 red birds eye chilli depending on desired heat level
10 small tomatoes
small bunch of mint (50g)
1 bunch of spring onions
small bunch of coriander (30g)
1 medium sized carrot
3 tablespoons of fish sauce
1 tablespoon of dry glutinous rice
1 tablespoon on white sugar
handful of green beans (optional)
300g glutinous(sticky) rice
Yoyo Laos Sauce (original, mild or extra hot) as a side & perfect to dip your sticky rice.
Method
1. Start cooking the sticky rice. If you don’t have glutinous rice you can serve this dish with regular rice too.
2. In a frying pan and add one tablespoon of the dry glutinous rice (no oil needed) stir until it goes brown in colour (around 4-5 minutes). Leave it to cool and transfer to a pestle and mortar, pound until this starts to powder. Put this to one side.
3. Wash all the vegetables. Chop the red onion finely and grate the carrot lengthways. Remove the stems from the mint (only the leaves are required), chop the coriander. Chop the chilis finely (wear gloves or remember to wash your hands), chop the spring onion, this dish only requires the stems. Chop the tomatoes in half and if you wish to add green beans, chop these (they are used in the dish raw/uncooked).
4. Squeeze the two limes into a bowl adding the sugar and fish sauce, stir until mixed.
5. Cook the pork in a pan with a little oil. Once cooked remove and leave to cool in a large bowl.
6. Add the sugar/fish sauce/lime juice mix to the pork and stir in. Then add the vegetables & herbs, again stirring to mix all the ingredients together. Add as much of the vegetables and herbs as you wish.
8. Now add the magic ingredient, the roasted rice powder and mix in thoroughly.
9. Serve with sticky rice (or plain rice), adding cucumber and lettuce to the plates as garnish and a side dish of original Yoyo Laos Sauce - perfect for dipping your sticky rice!
YOYO LAO-STYLE NOODLE SALAD
(Serves 2 as a starter dish)
This is one of my favourite dishes and it's quick to make, healthy and most important of all, it's really tasty!
You can easily swap out the chicken for another type of protein if you wish, no problem.
I make this as a starter for two people to share but it can also be a main dish, just double the amounts below and as with most of my dishes, you can add more or less chillis depending on how spicy you want to make it.
What you’ll need
1 chicken breast (120g)
1 small red onion (30g)
Vermicelli noodles (60g)
Baby plum tomatoes (50g)
1 lime (15g of lime juice)
Carrot (15-20g)
Fish Sauce (5-10g depending on taste)
Coriander (5g)
Mint (5g)
White Sugar (10g)
Salt (3g)
2 x Red birds eye chilli - add more or less depending on your desired heat level.
Yoyo Salted Green Pepper 5-10g
Method
1. Firstly, start with the vermicelli noodles. Boil these for 3-5 mins and when cooked (pro tip), cut them using scissors - makes them easier to eat and more manageable in the salad.
2. Then dice/mince your chicken (or other protein) and add to 200-300ml of water in a pan to boil. Let the pan heat and stir until cooked. Sieve the chicken and put to one side.
3. Next chop the baby plum tomatoes, the red onion and grate the carrot and put to one side.
4. Put the fish sauce into a small bowl, add the sugar, salt and then squeeze in a lime and mix together until the sugar mostly dissolves.
5. Add everything above into a bowl and mix.
6. Chop up your coriander finely and add this. Next add your mint. I like to use the large soft mint leaves, splitting them as I add them to the mix.
7. Now add in your chopped birds eye chilli and stir again and then finally, add in 5-10g of Yoyo salted green peppers to give you salad a spicy peppery finish.
Serve and enjoy!
