With the amount of Vietnamese and Thai food we cook in our house, you'd think we were Southeast Asian, but we're not. Although I like to say I'm Asian by association since I spent tons of time growing up with my Lao best friend. I was not adventurous as a child when it came to food and never really appreciated their cooking until recently. Now I can't get enough of exploring Vietnamese and Thai recipes at home.
Many Southeast Asian dishes are already naturally gluten-free and any that aren't can be easily modified in most cases. One of my favorite dishes is Thai Beef Salad. It's so simple to make, but incredibly full of flavor - hitting on salty, sour, sweet all in one bite. I found a great recipe from Souvlaki for the Soul that looked so amazing I had to give it a whirl and I'm so glad I did, because I'm adding it to my dinner rotation.
The recipe calls for filet mignon, which I've shied away from cooking at home because the handful of times we've made it I haven't been wowed. I've had some amazing filet in restaurants and I after a few mediocre attempts at home I figured why bother, I can always have it when I eat out, but not any more. The richness of the filet in this recipe is the perfect centerpiece for the dish and it really melts in your mouth if you're careful in your preparation of the meat. I love making this dish for a quick, satisfying meal after work, but it's a great starter for a larger meal too...served with loads of red wine of course. If you try it, let me know what you think!
| Thai Beef Salad |
SALAD
- 2 medallions of good quality filet mignon
- 2 tomatoes, deseeded and chopped
- 2 Lebanese (or English) cucumbers deseeded and sliced
- half a small red onion thinly sliced
- small bunch of cilantro
- small bunch of mint leaves
- handful of dry roasted peanuts
- handful of toasted sesame seeds
- fried shallots for garnishing
DRESSING
- 1/4 cup peanut oil
- juice of half a lime
- 2 tablespoons of fish sauce
- 1 small red chili finely chopped
- a small portion of palm sugar
Place the cucumber, tomato, red onion, coriander, mint, peanuts and sesame seeds in a bowl.
Sear your filet in a hot pan (I used a cast iron pan) a few mins each side.
Place the pan (NOT WITH A PLASTIC HANDLE OF COURSE!) into the oven and leave the beef in there for about 10 mins. Whilst that is cooking, whisk up your dressing. Please note, the dressing is “a taste as you go along” thing. It may need more of one ingredient to find the balance. Remember the Thai mantra for cooking. Spicy, sweet, sour and salty. Have fun and experiment.
Take the beef out and let it rest for a few mins. Once rested, slice diagonally land toss it in with the salad ingredients. Give it a good toss!
Present salad with fried shallots on top for garnish.
