Thai Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. Yam Talay
A bright, fiery Thai seafood salad tossing tender shrimp and squid with chili, lime, and fresh herbs.
Contains common allergens
In the app, Listahan checks these against your household automatically.
Good to know
- Ready in under 30 minutes
Matched from this dish's own ingredients and timing. Browse more: 30-minute meals
Instructions
5 steps- 1
Bring a pot of water to a gentle boil and blanch the shrimp for about 90 seconds, then the squid for 60 seconds, until just opaque and tender; drain and let cool slightly.
- 2
In a large bowl, whisk together the lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, chilies, and garlic until the sugar dissolves to make a punchy dressing.
- 3
Add the warm seafood to the dressing along with the shallots, tossing to coat while the seafood is still warm so it absorbs the flavors.
- 4
Fold in the cilantro and green onions just before serving to keep them fresh and bright.
- 5
Plate over a bed of crisp lettuce and serve at room temperature.
Listahan Family Score™
56/100
Works for many families
Score reflects how well this recipe fits a typical busy household. In the app, your Family Score is personalized to your household's allergens, kids, and pantry.
Nutrition
per serving185
Calories
32 g
Protein
11 g
Carbs
1 g
Fat
Estimated per serving. Actual values depend on the brands and portions you use.
Listahan cooking guide
Chef notes & practical guide
Technique notes, ingredient swaps, serve-alongside ideas, storage guidance, and equipment for this recipe.
Cultural context
Yam Talay belongs to the Thai family of yam salads, where the word points to a toss of cooked ingredients with a sharp dressing rather than a leafy salad. Talay means sea, so the dish is built around seafood that is briefly cooked, then dressed with lime, fish sauce, chilies, garlic, and fresh herbs while still warm enough to take on the seasoning.
Listahan note
This version keeps the seafood simple and lets the dressing do the heavy lifting. The priority is tender shrimp and squid, a bright lime-fish sauce balance, and herbs added late so they stay fresh instead of wilting.
Technique cues
- Blanch the shrimp and squid separately because squid tightens quickly. Pull both as soon as they turn opaque so the salad stays tender.
- Toss the warm seafood with the dressing before adding herbs. Warm shrimp and squid absorb the lime, fish sauce, garlic, and chili more readily than cold seafood.
- Taste the dressing before the seafood goes in. It should read a little louder than you want the final salad to be, because the seafood and shallots soften the edges.
Kitchen flow
- Parallel prep
- Slice the shallots, chilies, garlic, cilantro, and green onions while the blanching water comes up to temperature.
- Make-ahead
- Mix the dressing and prep the herbs a few hours ahead, then blanch and toss the seafood close to serving.
- Leftover move
- Spoon leftovers over chilled rice noodles with extra lime and a handful of fresh cilantro.
- Cleanup rhythm
- Drain the seafood in a colander set in the sink, then use one mixing bowl for both dressing and final tossing.
Ingredient brief
Role, handling, and swap guidance for each key ingredient.
Shrimp, peeled and deveined
Main seafood
Purpose: Shrimp brings sweetness and a firm bite that balances the sharper lime and chili dressing.
Handling: Blanch just until opaque, then drain well so extra water does not dilute the dressing.
Adaptation: Small scallops can give a similar sweet seafood note, but they need an even gentler cook.
Squid, cleaned and sliced into rings
Tender seafood contrast
Purpose: Squid gives the salad its springy texture and makes the dish feel closer to a Thai seafood counter version.
Handling: Slice into even rings and blanch briefly; overcooked squid turns chewy fast.
Adaptation: Use all shrimp if squid is hard to find, though the salad will lose some of its mixed-seafood texture.
Fresh lime juice
Bright acid
Purpose: Lime juice gives yam salads their clean, direct sourness and keeps the seafood tasting light.
Handling: Juice limes right before mixing so the dressing tastes fresh rather than flat.
Adaptation: Lemon juice works in a pinch, but it tastes softer and less Thai than lime.
Fish sauce
Salty savory base
Purpose: Fish sauce seasons the seafood while adding the deep savory note that plain salt cannot provide.
Handling: Whisk it with lime juice and sugar until the sugar fully dissolves before adding the seafood.
Adaptation: A soy sauce and lime combination gives a different, darker profile when fish sauce is not wanted.
Thai bird's eye chilies
Heat
Purpose: Bird's eye chilies bring a clean, fast heat that cuts through the seafood and fish sauce.
Handling: Slice thinly for direct heat, or use fewer chilies if you want the lime and herbs to lead.
Adaptation: Serrano or Fresno chile gives gentler heat and a fruitier taste.
Sliced shallots
Sharp crunch
Purpose: Shallots add sweetness, bite, and texture so the salad is not just soft seafood in dressing.
Handling: Slice thinly so they soften slightly in the dressing without taking over the bowl.
Adaptation: Thinly sliced red onion works, but it is stronger and benefits from a brief soak in cold water.
Technique notes
- Keep the water at a gentle boil, not a hard rolling boil, so the seafood cooks evenly without toughening at the edges.
- Drain the seafood thoroughly before tossing. Even a little trapped blanching water can make the dressing taste thin.
- Add cilantro and green onions at the end, after the warm seafood has already taken on the dressing, so the herbs stay green and fragrant.
Ingredient swaps
- Fish sauce alternative
- Use soy sauce with an extra squeeze of lime for salt and depth, knowing the flavor will be less briny and less traditional.
- Heat control
- Use one bird's eye chili for a milder bowl, or remove the seeds from a Fresno chile for gentler heat with more color.
- Seafood-only shortcut
- Use all shrimp and skip the squid when shopping is tight; keep the blanching time short so the texture stays snappy.
- Noodle bowl direction
- Serve the dressed seafood over thin rice noodles and add a little extra lime juice so the noodles do not mute the dressing.
Serve alongside
- Steamed jasmine rice
- Coconut rice
- Rice noodle salad with cucumber
- Thai omelet with scallions
- Thai iced tea
- Lime soda water
- Cold lager
Serving suggestions only — check pairings for your household's allergens.
Storage & reheating
- Refrigerate leftovers in a sealed container, keeping any extra herbs separate when possible so they stay brighter.
- This salad is best served cool or room temperature; if repurposing warm, heat the seafood very briefly and add fresh herbs afterward.
- Freezing is not a good fit for this dish because the squid, shrimp, and fresh lime dressing lose their clean texture after thawing.
Equipment
- Medium pot
- Colander
- Large mixing bowl
- Sharp knife
Make this household-aware
Listahan Pro checks this recipe against your household's allergens, finds pantry-aware swaps, builds the shopping list, and helps you plan the week around it.
Plan it in Listahan
Add Yam Talay to your week, check it against your household's allergens, and build the shopping list automatically.
More Thai recipes
Thai Lens Verified Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. Pla Pao
A whole salt-crusted fish stuffed with lemongrass and grilled until the skin is crackling and the flesh is silky.
Thai Lens Verified Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. Thong Yip
Petite golden flowers pressed from egg yolk and sugar, simmered in jasmine-scented syrup until set — a centuries-old Thai royal confection as beautiful as it is sweet.
Thai Lens Verified Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. Pla Rad Prik
Whole fish fried to a shatteringly crisp shell, then blanketed in a sticky, sweet-hot chili-tamarind sauce with garlic and basil — dramatic, punchy, and made for sharing.