Pan Asian Beef Salad

Kathy Paterson serves us up a recipe to put on repeat over summer when it’s stonkingly hot and you just need to eat something that stimulates the palate.

Serves 4

2 x sirloin steaks (about 500g), at room temperature

4 cloves garlic, crushed

finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

3 tablespoons light soy sauce

3 tablespoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

4 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced

1 long red chilli, finely chopped

1 handful of mint leaves, chopped or torn

1 handful of flat leaf parsley leaves, chopped

1 handful of coriander leaves, chopped, plus extra leaves to garnish

Salad

350g green beans, trimmed and sliced, steamed until bite-tender

½ telegraph cucumber, very finely sliced

2 ripe tomatoes, sliced

a few chives, snipped

1-2 tender makrut lime leaves, centre vein removed then very finely sliced or chopped

Pan-fry or barbecue steaks over high heat until medium-rare, 3-4 minutes each side for steaks 3cm in thickness. Set aside to cool, at least 10 minutes.

Put the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and stir well to dissolve the sugar.

Slice the steaks thinly, cutting across the grain of the meat and put into the bowl of dressing as you go. Gently toss to coat all the meat in dressing.

Set aside to marinate for about 30 minutes.

To serve, gently toss all the salad ingredients together then put in a shallow serving bowl or on a large platter. Top with the beef and dressing. Finish with a few extra coriander leaves. 

Tips

• Pan-fry or barbecue the fat cap on the sirloin first to brown and render the fat – this gives so much flavour and enough fat to cook the meat in.

• Remove the seeds from the chilli before chopping for less heat, if preferred.

• Use 1 stalk of lemongrass. Using the pale green part, peel stiff outer leaves away from the stalk to reveal slightly softer underlayers.

• Slice and then finely chop, then pound into a paste.