Expanding my repertoire of international homemade dishes, I made for the first time the other night a Thai Beef Salad. My friends complain that I have been feeding them too much… Yes, for I was one holding the can of whipped cream to your ice-cream and spraying it like I was putting out a grade eight electrical fire… Yes. It’s. All. Me.
If you want something fresh and filling, my word it was filling, and fairly low-maintenance for a mid-week dinner, read on.
Thai food is all about getting the balance of flavours just right; the acidity, the sweetness, the saltiness, so use this recipe as a guide only and play with quantities as every time you make it, the dressing will need to be altered slightly, depending on how sour your limes are. Also, you don’t have to have the meat as rare as I did, but how could I not have it blue? The jewel-coloured hunks of tender juicy beef set off the gorgeous jungle greens and make for stunning visuals, and remember we eat with our eyes first…
Ingredients
- 300g beef fillet (this serves two)
- 2 handfuls of baby spinach
- 2 handfuls of watercress
- 1 Spanish onion thinly sliced (I left this out of my half as I cannot do raw onion)
- 1 red capsicum
- 2 spring onions, sliced
- 1 Lebanese cucumber, sliced
- 1 handful of coriander, chopped
- 1 handful of roasted cashews and peanuts
- Dressing – 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 red chillies, diced
- juice from 4 limes
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoom soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons honey
Method
- Make the dressing by crushing the garlic and chilli together in a bowl then add the lime juice, fish sauce, soy sauce and honey. Mix well and set aside.
- Sear the beef in a hot pan. Cook it as little or as long as you wish. Mine was in the pan for hardly any time at all. When done to your desired level, rest it for as long as you have cooked it, then carve into slices about 1/2cm thick.
- Mix all the salad ingredients and add the beef then the dressing.
