THAI BEEF SALAD

My fiancee Chris bought me Pete Evans' cookbook 'Healthy Every Day' last week and since then I have been madly trying out as many of the recipes as I possibly can. My favourite so far: the desserts, snacks and this Thai Beef Salad. Evans uses kelp noodles, which are made of kelp, a sea vegetable, sodium alginate (sodium salt extracted from brown seaweed) and water. This recipe is very similar to Pete's, with a few changes to the dressing. I just happened to have kelp noodles in my pantry from an outing to Wray Organic months ago. Now I will level with you; kelp noodles are not cheap, however they are very low in carbs and calories and contains calcium, potassium, iodine and magnesium, among other essential minerals. You can use rice noodles, such as rice vermicelli, however I would strongly advise splashing out on the kelp noodles as they are rich in nutrients, have a very interesting texture and require no cooking! I ate this for lunch today and can not remember the last time a salad filled me up as much as this one. 

Ingredients

Salad

• 340g kelp noodles 
• 2 tablespoons sea salt
• 2 tablespoons ground black pepper
• 600g grass fed eye fillet steak, fat trimmed and cut into even slabs (around 4-6 pieces)
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 3 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 large handful fresh coriander

Dressing

• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons coriander stems, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon chilli flakes or 1 long red chilli, finely sliced
• the juice of 1 medium lime 
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar 
• 2 tablespoons gluten-free soy sauce or tamari
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon black sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
• water 

Cooking 

1. Soak the kelp noodles in a medium bowl of hot water for 30 minutes. Drain with cold water and set aside. 

2. Meanwhile, combine the salt and pepper and sprinkle on a plate. Evenly roll the eye fillet pieces in this mixture. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat and swirl the coconut oil in the pan. Cook the steak for 3-4 minutes each side, then remove from the heat and wrap loosely in foil for 10 minutes to rest. 

3. Whilst the meat is resting make the dressing by combining all the  dressing ingredients and stirring to combine. Add a few splashes to water to thin out the dressing. 

4. Pour half the dressing on the drained noodles and toss to combine (this will further soften the noodles). 

5. Thinly slice the cooked beef. Arrange the noodles, sliced beef, spring onions and coriander leaves in a large bowl and toss to combine. Pour the remaining half of the dressing over the top and toss again. Serve at room temperature or chilled. 

Serves / 4 

Total Cooking time / 35-40 minutes (prep time is included in cooking time)

x Emily