Spicy Thai beef salad

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 350 g rump steak(s), one slice 3.5-4 cm thick
• ½ cucumber(s)
• 10 cherry tomatoes
• 2 small onions, mild
• 8 shallots (Thai shallots)
• 2 spring onions
• 10 tbsp lime juice
• 2 tbsp palm sugar, maybe a little more
• 5 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 chili peppers, red, pitted and finely chopped, possibly more
• ¼ tsp chili powder, more if desired
• 3 tbsp coriander leaves
• 1 tbsp mint, coarsely chopped
• Iceberg lettuce, finely chopped

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 40 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 5 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 15 minutes

Yam Nua… especially good lukewarm

Trim the rump steak, trimming all tendons and fat. Sear in oil on both sides for 2 minutes, then place in a preheated dish in an 85°C oven. The meat will remain there for about 35-40 minutes. In the meantime, make the remaining preparations. Peel the cucumber, halve it, remove the seeds, and cut into thin slices. Halve the tomatoes. Peel the onions and shallots and cut them into thin wedges, and the spring onions into 2 cm pieces. Mix the dressing. To do this, scrape the palm sugar off the cone with a heavy knife and dissolve it in the liquid. Stir in the chili cubes and chili powder and season to taste. The dressing should taste salty-sweet with a fresh acidity. More sweet than sour. Halve the meat lengthwise and cut into millimeter-thin slices. Toss with the vegetables, stirring in half of the dressing. Place the mixture on a thin bed of iceberg lettuce. Drizzle the remaining dressing over the salad, garnish with the herbs, and serve immediately while still warm. Note: The original version absolutely calls for a grilled steak, preferably over charcoal. Oven-cooking the meat isn’t Thai either, but it’s a great way to serve the salad at its best. The meat should still be lukewarm. I’ve reduced the spice level quite a bit in this recipe because many Thai-food beginners are put off by the excessively hot Thai salads. If you can handle more heat, leave the seeds in the chili peppers and add more chili powder.