Laab Noodle Salad
Updated November 4, 2025
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
- Ready In
- 30 min
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
3 ounces rice vermicelli noodles
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 bird’s-eye chile, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced, divided
7 tablespoons safflower or sunflower oil, divided
Salt and pepper
6 ounces green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces (1 ½ cups)
1 pound ground beef
12 ounces romaine lettuce, chopped (8 cups)
6 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved (1 cup)
1 small yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped (about 1 cup)
½ cup coarsely chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
30 grams carbs; 81 milligrams cholesterol; 633 calories; 21 grams monosaturated fat; 10 grams polyunsaturated fat; 12 grams saturated fat; 47 grams fat; 1 gram trans fat; 5 grams fiber; 904 milligrams sodium; 24 grams protein; 5 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a medium bowl, combine noodles with enough boiling water to cover by 1 inch. Let stand until softened, about 3 minutes. Rinse under cold water until cool, then drain. Snip with scissors a few times so the long noodles are more manageable.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine lime juice, fish sauce, chile, ¼ teaspoon of the garlic, 5 tablespoons of the oil and 1 tablespoon of water. Season with salt and pepper and whisk well.
- Step 3
In a 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium-high. Add green beans, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring just a few times to allow the beans to char, until crisp-tender, 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
- Step 4
Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and beef to the skillet and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up the meat, until beef is caramelized in spots, 5 minutes. Add the remaining garlic and stir until fragrant, 30 seconds. Stir in the charred green beans, season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.
- Step 5
Spread rice noodles on a large serving platter and drizzle over 3 tablespoons of the dressing. Arrange lettuce, tomatoes and bell pepper in an even layer over the noodles and drizzle over 3 tablespoons of the dressing.
- Step 6
Top with the beef mixture in an even layer and sprinkle with the cilantro. Serve with the remaining dressing on the side for drizzling.
Private Notes
Comments
Larb is really Lao by origin. It’s their national dish. A lot of great Lao food gets credited as Thai
I’m a vegetarian and I used coconut aminos for fish sauce and gardein fake beef bits for the meat. I think this recipe needs that beefy flavor compared to tofu to be more authentic to the Laotian dish. I had no troubles with a 1:1 sub and will be making this again!
Used ground chicken instead of beef, and added chopped scallions and mint to the cilantro. Turned out great!
Did not have vermicelli noodles on hand. Subbed with buckwheat soba and wow, earthy and yummy. Added cashews and quick picked shallots on top for a bit of crunch and tang. Enormous hit!
I made this with tofu instead of beef, mint and scallion, and added the crispy rice topping from Hetty Lui McKinnon's Tofu Laab recipe - delish
This was good but I omitted ALL of the safflower oil and just added a teaspoon of sesame oil to the dressing to balance out the acidity. I also ordered toasted rice powder on amazon and added that in per suggestion of other commenters.