Vietnamese Crab Salad with Rice Noodles

• 1/2 cup (4 oz) sugar, or more, to taste
• 6 tbsp fish sauce (nam pla)
• 6 tbsp lemon juice or lime juice (juice of 2 lemons or about 3 limes)
• 2-3 small chiles, deseeded and sliced finely
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 1 tbsp finely grated ginger
• 9 oz thin or medium rice noodles
• 5 oz peanuts
• 1 lb cooked crabmeat
• 1 large cucumber, chopped
• 11 oz radishes, trimmed and sliced
• 1/4 c roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves and stalks

1. To make the dressing, mix all the ingredients in a pitcher.
2. Put the noodles in a bowl of boiling water for 5 minutes until they have softened.
3. Drain and rinse.
4. Meanwhile, toast the peanuts under the broiler preheated to hot.
5. Rub off the skins and roughly chop the nuts.
6. In a bowl, toss together the dressing with the noodles, then add the crabmeat, chopped cucumber and sliced radishes.
7. Sprinkle the toasted peanuts and the cilantro over the top and serve.
8. Variation
9. Crunchy Vietnamese Salad With Rice Noodles
10. Replace the crab with 4 oz each of bean sprouts, watercress and grated carrot.

sugar, fish sauce, lemon juice, chiles, garlic, ginger, thin, peanuts, crabmeat, cucumber, radishes, fresh cilantro

Taken from www.cookstr.com/recipes/vietnamese-crab-salad-with-rice-noodles (may not work)