Adam Liaw shares the secret to perfectly poached chicken in this simple, vibrant salad

Step 1

For the nuoc cham dressing, pound the chilli and garlic together in a mortar and pestle. If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, you can just finely chop them together. Add the sugar and lime juice and taste it, adjusting so that the mixture has a good balance between sweet and sour (see notes). Add the fish sauce to taste, then about 2 tablespoons of water to dilute the dressing.

Step 2

For the chicken breast, place 1.2 litres of water in a small, heavy saucepan and bring it to a simmer. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chicken breast, cover tightly, and stand for 20 minutes. If you like, you can test the internal temperature of the chicken breast with a thermometer. It should be about 64C. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, sprinkle some salt on your hands and shred it into thin strips (see note).

Step 3

Combine the shredded chicken with the remaining ingredients in a large bowl, pour over as much of the nuoc cham as you like, and toss everything together with your hands. Scatter liberally with fried shallots and peanuts, and serve with extra nuoc cham on the side.