Vietnamese Beef and Pho Noodle Salad

Vietnamese Pho Noodle Salad can be used with a range of beef cuts. It's fresh, healthy and easy to prepare, making it the ideal go-to.

Ingredients:

Beef
600-800g Quality beef steaks, trimmed

Marinade/dressing
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup fish sauce
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon lemongrass paste
1 tablespoon ginger juice
2 teaspoons sesame oil
Pinch of chilli flakes

To serve
100g vermicelli noodles
1 cup red cabbage or lettuce, very finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and cut into thin sticks
1 cucumber, shaved into ribbons
2 celery stalks, thinly sliced
½ red capsicum, deseeded and thinly sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup fresh herbs - e.g. mint, coriander, basil
1 packet snow peas or sugar snap peas
¾ cup roasted cashews, chopped
1 red chilli, chopped

Method:

Marinade:

Whisk the marinade ingredients together in a bowl to dissolve the sugar. Taste and add fish sauce, lime juice or chilli to suit your taste. Place the beef in a resealable bag or container and pour half of the marinade in to coat the steaks. Seal the bag and marinate for an hour or overnight in the fridge.

Beef:

Heat a little oil in a frying pan over a high heat. Cook the steaks for 3-4 minutes until the underside is crunchy and browned, then turn over and cook for another 3-4 minutes for medium rare or cooked to your liking. Remove from the heat to a warm plate, cover loosely with foil and rest for 10 minutes before carving across the grain into thin strips.

To serve:

Place the Pho noodles in a heatproof bowl and pour boiling water over to cover them. Let stand for about 10 minutes until soft then drain. Gently combine the beef, noodles and salad ingredients with the remaining dressing, season with salt and pepper and arrange in bowls. Garnish with extra nuts, fresh herbs and chopped red chilli.

Source recipes.co.nz