Lemongrass and pineapple beef vermicelli salad
This fresh Asian salad is made into a substantial meal with vermicelli noodles and marinated beef.
Ingredients
For the crispy fried shallots
- 1kg/2lb 4oz red shallots, finely chopped
- 1 litre/1¾ pints vegetable oil
For the pineapple fish sauce
- 50ml/2fl oz fish sauce
- 120g/4oz caster sugar
- 50ml/2fl oz lime juice
- 15²µ/½´Ç³ú garlic, minced
- 25g/1oz red chillies, minced
- 50g/1¾oz fresh (or use tinned) pineapple, minced
For the salad
- 500g/1lb 2oz topside beef
- 200g/7oz vermicelli rice noodles
- 1 cucumber, cut into thin matchsticks
- 3 carrots, ideally 1 yellow, 1 orange and 1 purple, peeled and cut into thin matchsticks
- 2 Little Gem lettuces, finely shredded
- 80g/3oz pea shoots
- 20²µ/¾´Ç³ú fresh coriander, roughly chopped
- 20²µ/¾´Ç³ú fresh Thai basil, leaves roughly chopped
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
- 4 tsp crispy fried shallots (store-bought or see below)
- 40g/1½oz roasted unsalted peanuts, roughly crushed in a pestle and mortar
For the marinade
- 2 tbsp red chilli paste
- 2 tbsp garlic paste
- 2 tbsp lemongrass paste
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 3 chicken stock cubes, crumbled
- 5 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
Method
To make the crispy shallots, heat the oil in a wok over the lowest setting for around 5–7 minutes. An easy way to tell when the oil is ready is by placing a wooden chopstick into the oil and waiting until bubbles start to form around it on the surface of the oil. Carefully add half of the shallots to the hot oil and deep-fry for 10–12 minutes until golden brown.
Remove with a mesh strainer and transfer onto sheets of kitchen towel, making sure they are in a single layer so they stay crisp. Repeat with the remaining shallots. Leave overnight to dry. Put the crispy shallots into an airtight jar once completely dry and store for up to 6 months at room temperature.
To make the pineapple fish sauce, place the fish sauce, 100ml/3½fl oz water, sugar and lime juice in a small saucepan and bring to the boil over a medium heat. Remove any impurities from the top of the sauce, if there are any, then take off the heat immediately and leave to cool.
When completely cool, add the garlic, chillies and pineapple and mix well – they should float to the top. Pour into an airtight bottle or jar with a lid. Store, covered, for up to 5 days in the fridge.
To make the salad, cut the beef lengthways into strips that are 5cm/2in wide. Slice across the strips as thinly as you can. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions, then drain and set aside.
To make the marinade, place all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix together well. Add the beef slices, then gently and evenly coat in the marinade, taking extra care as beef this thin is fragile. Place in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour, but up to 3 hours for the best results, bringing the beef back to room temperature 30 minutes before cooking.
Before cooking the beef, place the noodles in the base of each serving bowl, then add the cucumber and carrot strips, along with the lettuce, pea shoots, coriander and Thai basil. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Add the beef (in two batches for best results) and cook for 4–6 minutes until well done. (The beef may be a little burnt around the edges from the honey and that's perfect.)
Serve the beef on top of the salad ingredients, then pour 200ml/7fl oz of the pineapple fish sauce and sprinkle over the crispy fried shallots and peanuts to finish.
