Thai style beef salad

This is inspired by a recipe from Annabel Langbein's The Free Range Cook. Mostly, I make this when we have one steak left over and I need to make it stretch to feed two people. However, I love the flavours of this salad so much. When I'm craving a steak, it's always this recipe that springs to mind. I know some people are put off by fish sauce, but it is truly the key ingredient in this. It adds something unbelievable to the steak, an unbeatable salty umami. The herb leaves in this are treated as salad leaves, in place of lettuce, so don't be shy with them. If you want to fill this out a bit, shred some gem lettuces and add them in. I prefer to serve this with rice to soak up all the delicious juices.

Ingredients

  • splash of fish sauce
  • 1 or 2 thick cut frying steaks (I buy the best quality I can afford, it makes a difference)
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 tblsp oil
  • 1 1/2 cucumbers, deseeded and sliced into battons
  • 1/2 red onion, chopped as small as possible
  • 1 spring onion, chopped
  • 300g cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
  • small bunch of mint, leaves plucked and chopped
  • small bunch of coriander, leaves plucked and chopped

Dressing

  • 80ml sweet chilli sauce
  • zest and juice of 1 lime (more juice if you like it)
  • 1 tsp fish sauce

Method

  1. Prepare the steaks first. Cut off any chucks of fat on the outside. Rub the steaks with the fish sauce and season them with salt and pepper. Let them sit for a minute.

  2. Place the sweet chilli sauce, lime zest and juice, and 1 tsp of fish sauce in a small bowl, and stir to combine. Taste it, and add salt or more lime juice if you think it needs it.

  3. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat, and cook the steaks for 3 minutes on each side (or however you like them done). Wrap them in some tin foil and then wrap that in a tea towel to hold in the warmth while the steaks rest.

  1. In a large bowl, combine the cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, mint and coriander.

  2. Unwrap the steaks, being careful to reserve any juices. Slice them thinly across the grain and add them to the salad bowl. Pour the meat juices over the salad, and then pour the dressing over. Toss together well.

References

Langbein, Annabel (2010). The Free Range Cook. Phoenix Offset.

Tags

  • Recipe
  • Salad
  • Dinner
  • Easy