Marinated sirloin steak with Vietnamese-style dressing
Steak night just got more interesting! This zesty recipe for two marinates the meat in a Vietnamese-inspired sauce and serves it with a fresh, sharp salad.
Ingredients
- 300²µ/10½´Ç³ú sirloin steak with plenty of fat
For the marinade
- 1–2 pickled chillies, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
- 3 tbsp Thai fish sauce
- 1½ tbsp palm sugar
- 2 tsp vegetable oil
For the crispy shallots
- vegetable oil, for deep-frying
- 2 shallots, thinly sliced
- 50g/1¾oz plain flour
- 50g/1¾oz cornflour
For the salad
- 1 tbsp dried shrimps, rehydrated in boiling water for 5 minutes, then drained
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander
- ½ cucumber, shredded
For the dressing
- 4 tbsp Thai fish sauce
- 2 limes, juice only
- 2-3 tbsp palm sugar
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 Thai red chilli, chopped
Method
Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl or jug. Pour over the steak and leave to marinate in the fridge for 2-3 hours.
Take the steak out of the fridge 30 minutes before you wish to cook it. Heat a griddle pan until it is smoking hot. Chargrill the steak for 3-4 minutes on each side or until cooked to your liking. Leave to rest for 10 minutes.
Fill a deep-fat fryer or a large, deep, heavy-bottomed pan two-thirds full with the oil. Heat to 180C (a cube of bread should turn brown in one minute when dropped in.) CAUTION: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended. Mix the flour and cornflour together in a bowl and coat each shallot ring before lowering into the fryer for 1 minute. Drain on kitchen paper.
To make the salad, deep-fry the rehydrated shrimps until crisp then drain on kitchen paper.
Combine all the crisp shrimps with the rest of salad ingredients in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Set both aside.
To serve, toss most of the dressing ingredients with the salad. Slice the steak into strips, drizzle over the remaining dressing and serve with the salad and crispy shallots.
