Day 7: Thai Beef Salad

I've been lax... Burgers and cheese and crisps and chocolate and pizza and fries and butter. Not to mention wine and cider and vodka and whiskey and beer and gin and tequila. Yuck. Time to get back on form with spicy Thai-style beef salad, not only interesting in colour and flavour but containing much needed meat. Being pescetarian all week doesn't suit the ravenous carnivore in me.

Today's recipe: Thai Beef Salad
Serves 4

Dressing-
1 lemongrass stalk, finely chopped
2 red chilli, finely chopped and deseeded if preferred 
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 piece of ginger root (roughly 1 inch long), peeled and finely chopped
10g fresh coriander, finely chopped
4 spring onion, finely sliced
1tbsp light soy sauce
1tbsp fish sauce
1tsp sesame oil
1tbsp olive oil

1 lime
1 carrot, grated
1 green pepper, sliced
2 pak choi, sliced
2 rump steak

1. Place all the dressing ingredients into a large bowl and mix thoroughly. Add the juice of half the lime and place to one side.
2. Sear the rump steaks for 2 minutes on each side for medium rare. Once the steaks are cooked, place them into the bowl with the dressing to cool and soak up the flavours.
3. Once the steak has cooled, remove from dressing and slice finely. Add back to the dressing along with the carrot and pepper and mix.
4. Stir fry the pak choi for 2 minutes and distribute between four plates. Place the steak and vegetable mixture over the top and squeeze over the extra lime.

This salad does require buying a fair few ingredients the end product is far fresher than using a pre-made Thai paste to smother the meat in.