Our spicy Thai beef salad is one of our favourite meals to make when the weather starts getting warm and the exotic ingredients keeps it interesting and fresh.
Thai basil is used here, which gives this dish an intensely aromatic, slight aniseed flavour that pairs well with the cooling mint and fruity mango, but you could swap it for coriander if you'd prefer.
Toasting the rice gives a lovely flavour to the grains and grinding rice is a traditional method to add crunch and flavour to fresh and punchy salads like this one here.
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Yields:
4 serving(s)
Prep Time:
30 mins
Cook Time:
15 mins
Total Time:
45 mins
Cal/Serv:
297
Ingredients
For the dressing
5Tbsp.
lime juice (about 3 limes)
2Tbsp.
fish sauce
2tsp.
sugar
2-3 bird's eye chillies, deseeded and sliced
4
fresh kaffir lime leaves (2 doubles), de-veined and finely shredded, see GH Tip
1
echalion shallot, thinly sliced into rings
For the salad
11/2Tbsp.
Thai sticky rice or other short grain rice
2tsp.
vegetable oil
2
x 200g beef fillet steaks, trimmed
1/2
cucumber, sliced in half moons
1
mango, peeled, de-stoned and shredded/julienned
100g
mizuna or wild rocket
25g
bunch mint, leaves picked
25g
bunch Thai basil, leaves picked
40g
salted peanuts, roughly chopped
Directions
Step 1Make the dressing. In a small bowl, mix the lime juice, fish sauce and sugar until sugar dissolves. Stir in the chillies, shredded lime leaves and shallot rings and set aside.
Step 2For the salad, toast the rice in a frying pan over medium-high heat, shaking the pan frequently, until the rice is deep golden-brown, about 5-10min. Tip on to a plate, leave to cool completely then grind to a coarse powder with a pinch of salt using a pestle and mortar.
Step 3Return pan to high heat and add the oil. Pat steaks dry using kitchen paper and fry for 4-6min, turning halfway, until well browned on the outside but still rare in the middle. Remove to a plate and leave to rest for 5min while you assemble the rest of the salad.
Step 4In a large bowl toss ½ the dressing, the cucumber, mango, salad leaves, herbs and most of the peanuts. Tip on to a large platter (or divide between 4 plates). Thinly slice the steaks and arrange on top. Spoon over remaining dressing and scatter over the remaining peanuts and the ground toasted rice. Serve.
GH Tip
If you can’t find fresh kaffir lime leaves you can crumble in dried instead, or use the finely pared zest of 1 lime. It won’t have quite the same perfumed aroma, but will be close.
Per serving:
Calories: 297
Protein: 276g
Total fat: 13g
Saturates: 4g
Carbs: 15g
Total sugars: 9g
Fibre: 3g
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An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
