Vietnamese Beef Salad
Serves 2
Ingredients
- 220 to 300g steak (you can use any kind of steak)
- 50g rice vermicelli noodles
- 1/2 cup red cabbage very finely sliced
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 carrot peeled and cut into thin sticks
- 1/2 cucumber shaved into ribbons
- 1 celery stick sliced
- 1/2 cup fresh herbs – coriander, mint, parsley and basil (try to choose 2)
- 1/4 cup roasted peanuts or cashews chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Dressing/marinade
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup fish sauce or soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 tablespoon lemongrass paste
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon of minced chilli (optional)
Method
- Whisk the marinade ingredients together in a bowl to dissolve the sugar. Taste and add more juice, sugar or fish sauce until it tastes how you like it.
- Put the steak in a zip lock bag and pour ¾ of the marinade on top (Keep the rest to use as the salad dressing later). Cover and marinate for an hour.
- Place the noodles in a bowl and pour boiling water over to cover them. Leave them for about 10 minutes until soft, and drain.
- Heat a little oil in a frying pan over a high heat. Cook the steak for a few minutes until one side is crunchy and browned, then turn over and cook for another couple of minutes until medium rare. Remove from the heat to a plate and cover loosely with foil and rest for 10 minutes before carving. When ready to serve, slice across the grain into thin strips.
- Gently mix the beef, noodles and salad ingredients with the dressing and arrange in bowls. Garnish with extra nuts and fresh herbs.
