Banana Blossom Pork and Prawn Salad

1. Combine half the lime juice with 3 cups of water. Rub lime wedges over your knife and chopping board to prevent the banana blossom from turning brown. Cut the stem off the banana blossom and discard. Peel off the outer purple layers of the banana blossom until you reach a layer of petals that is entirely a pale, creamy yellow colour. Reserve one purple petal for serving.

2. Starting from the pointy end, cut the bulb crosswise into very thin slices. Place slices immediately into the lime water. Once you’ve cut about 1-inch of the bulb, cut the bulb into quarters lengthways. Place quarters into the lime water. Taking one quarter at a time, peel off the layers, stack and thinly slice.

3. Discard the undeveloped bananas in between the layers. Repeat until the whole bulb has been thinly sliced, being sure to place slices straight into the lime water as you go. Set aside until ready to assemble the salad.

4. Heat a wok over a medium-high heat. Add coconut sugar, fish sauce and 2 tablespoons water. Simmer until sugar dissolves and sauce has thickened slightly. Add prawns and pork mince and stir-fry until just cooked.

5. Remove wok from heat and add drained banana blossom slices, eschallots, peanuts, coriander, spring onion, mint leaves, chilli and remaining lime juice. Toss together and season with extra fish sauce or lime juice to taste.

6. Place reserved banana blossom leaf on a serving plate and pile salad on top.