Hot Thai beef salad

By: Margaret Fulton
From: Margaret Fulton Favourites
Serves: 4-6
Photographer: Tanya Zouev and Armelle Habib

Whenever I travel to Europe these days I find myself missing the food back home! Not just the simple food, such as a sandwich made with sourdough bread and an ox-heart tomato, but the Asian food that we can so easily make at home or eat in restaurants. I’ve become hooked on Chinese, Vietnamese, Malaysian and Thai food not only because I love the flavours, but also because the ingredients are affordable and easily obtained. I was introduced to the wonders of Thai food more than 20 years ago through Bupah, a friend of Suzanne’s. She taught us to make Thai fish cakes, a quick beef, chicken or fish curry using prepared curry paste, and this hot Thai beef salad.

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
500g	rump or sirloin steak
	freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup	torn mint leaves
1	large red onion, thinly sliced
or 2	large spring onions, thinly sliced
2	red chillies, sliced
1	large lime or 1⁄2 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons	fish sauce
1 teaspoon	sugar
a handful	mixed salad greens
1 cup	cherry tomatoes
a handful	rice vermicelli
	vegetable oil, for frying
2 tablespoons	roughly chopped roasted peanuts
1	red chilli, halved
	lime wedges, for serving

Method

Season the steak with pepper and cook on a hot ribbed grill or under a preheated grill for 5 minutes on each side or until done to taste. Remove and leave to stand for 10 minutes. Cut steak into very thin slices and place in a bowl with any meat juices. Meanwhile, combine the mint leaves with the onions, chillies, lime or lemon juice, fish sauce and sugar. Stir well and add to the beef slices, tossing. Combine with the mixed salad greens and cherry tomatoes and set aside.
Heat some vegetable oil in a wok, testing the heat with a few strands of vermicelli. It should swell immediately if the oil is hot enough. Fry the vermicelli, scooping out with a wire strainer as soon as they puff and turn pale golden. Drain well on paper towels and cool, then arrange in a bowl.
Pile the beef salad on top of the crispy noodles. Scatter with peanuts and chilli and serve with lime wedges.

To prepare mung bean vermicelli

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
	see method for ingredients

Method

Soak 100 g of mung bean vermicelli in hot water for 10 minutes, stirring to ensure that strands do not clump together. If not tender, drain, return to the bowl and add more hot water, soaking again until tender. Drain and refresh under cold water, then drain again. Arrange the drained vermicelli on a serving platter and top with the beef salad. Scatter with peanuts and red chilli and serve with lime wedges.

Note

You’ll find vermicelli at Asian food stores or supermarkets. There are two kinds: rice vermicelli or mung bean vermicelli (also known as glass, cellophane or transparent noodles). Mung bean vermicelli are made of flour and have a soft, slippery texture; rice vermicelli are firmer and whiter when cooked and are mostly used in fresh spring rolls, laksa and Vietnamese dishes. You can make the salad using either one.

Tags:: Margaret; Fulton; Favourites

Hot Thai beef salad

Ingredients

Method

To prepare mung bean vermicelli

Ingredients

Method

Note

Recipes

Books

Authors

Collections

Store

The Feed