This is absolutely delicious, and has the Big Four (sweet/sour/salty/spicy) that are typical of Thai food. The beef is intensely flavored, but then there’s the cool vegetable flavors to temper the richness.

One teaspoon of red pepper flakes means this is mild in terms of heat, so adjust upwards as desired.

It’s dead easy to make.

Ingredients:

1 lb. beef (flank steak is a good choice, or any other cut that doesn’t require long cooking)

For the marinade:

• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 Tbsp fish sauce (my current fave is Squid brand, with its disclaimer “Does not contain squid”)
• 1/4 cup soy sauce

For the dressing:

• 1/4 C shallots, minced
• 2 scallions, minced
• 1/4 C lime juice
• 1 handful cilantro, torn roughly
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes (more to taste)
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1/4 C fish sauce

For the salad:

• 1 small or 1/2 large Romaine lettuce, roughly torn
• 6 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 cucumbers, seeded if not seeded, sliced

Method:

Slice the beef slimly, easier if it spends half an hour in the freezer before.

Mix the marinade ingredients, mix well with the beef, and allow to marinate for an hour at room temperature.

Fry or grill for a few minutes or until desired doneness.

Mix the dressing ingredients, then add the beef and mix well.

Put the veggies in a bowl. Drain the beef (or use a slotted spoon) and put the meat on top.

Apologies for the the blurry pic, but sucky WordPress won’t let me select a better one.

Yum!

-R