Oh man. That was soooo good! The leftover salad I had from dinner last night, I mean. It definitely didn't taste like some crummy leftover. It was great for dinner too. Boy, so good!
Oh, hi there. Sorry, just reminiscing about the salad I ate for lunch, you know, five seconds ago. It was so good that I just had to share it with you, immediately. It's a really simple salad, but packs a huge punch. In fact, it was a little too spicy for our tastes last night; I'll dial it back a bit next time! I used (and recommend) grass-fed (and local, if you can get it) beef for this. Not only does it taste just wonderful, but the nutritional profile is much improved from your standard beef. I recognize that grass-fed tends to be pricey, but the good news is, this salad, as written below, makes about 4 great entree-sized salads. When all said and done, even with the grass-fed beef, each salad is only about $4. I won't go into too many details, but essentially, we are what we eat, and what we eat is what it eats. So....when cows eat a ton of grain, get no sunlight or exercise, etc., their bodies become acidic, they produce inflammation, and the nutrients in their meat is compromised. Grass-fed animals, however, have increased omega-3 fatty acids (anti-inflammatory) and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which is known for its anti-cancer effects (tumor suppression and growth hinderance). So, like most "processed" things, cows raised as Mother Nature intended, roaming fields or at least eating grass which makes their numerous stomachs oh so happy, are vastly superior to the "processed" barn-kept, grain and leftovers-fed beef most producers are shoveling out to consumers. I definitely encourage you to do your own research (always be aware of WHO did the research - Beef Farmers of America? Vegans? etc.), but suffice to say, if you can get grass-fed, do.
I haven't tried this, but I bet this whole thing would work well with tofu as well, if you want a meatless option. In either case, this meal comes together in about 15-20 minutes, so it's perfect for a week-night dinner and great for a special lunch the next day!
Thai Beef Salad
from Not Without Salt
makes about 4 entree-sized salads
sprinkling sweet paprika (you can always add more; ours was a bit too much!)
sprinkling cayenne pepper
3-4 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons water
¾ teaspoon maple syrup
1½ pound flank steak or skirt steak, preferably grass-fed (if not grass-fed, trim a bit if needed)
Salt and pepper, coarsely ground
3 shallots, sliced thin
1½ cups fresh mint leaves, torn
1½ cups fresh cilantro leaves (I use a cilantro paste; it keeps much better than fresh herbs! I used about 1 1/2 tsp)
1 Thai chile or jalapeño, small (I usually remove most to all of the seeds, again, this will depend on how spicy you want the final dish to be)
1 seedless English cucumber, thinly sliced or peeled with a potato peeler
3-4 cups greens (I have tried it with a spring mix and spinach; great with both!)
Heat a pan/grill pan over medium high heat. Salt and pepper your meat. Add the meat to the pan and allow to cook until nicely browned and crisp on the one side (about 5 minutes); flip and repeat on the other side. Internal temp should be about 125*F. When cooked, move the meat to a piece of foil and tent to rest, 5-10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make your dressing/sauce. Combine your paprika, cayenne, lime juice, fish sauce, water, and maple syrup in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk to combine. If using the tubey cilantro, add it too before you whisk; otherwise, add your mint and cilantro now.
Peel and then thinly slice your shallots. De-seed (as desired) your pepper and thinly slice it as well. Prepare your cucumber (I often just use a peeler to get thin strips; you can simply cut it thinly too!). Add the shallots and pepper slices to your dressing.
Cut your meat into thin slices, cutting against the grain (this will make the meat VERY tender). The meat should be juicy and still nice and pink on the inside. **This is a lot of meat. We often just cut up half of it and save half to slice up fresh for leftovers. You decide how much you want per salad. Add the sliced meat to your bowl full of dressing ingredients. Gently toss the meat around.
Pile your plate/bowl high with salad greens, add the cucumber, and then grab some drippy, delicious, spicy meat pieces and place on top of the greens. Make sure you get some delicious pepper and shallots on there too! If you want, drizzle a bit more of the "dressing" onto your greens (we've never found that necessary). Consume and repeat for lunch the next day.
I haven't tried this, but I bet this whole thing would work well with tofu as well, if you want a meatless option. In either case, this meal comes together in about 15-20 minutes, so it's perfect for a week-night dinner and great for a special lunch the next day!
Thai Beef Salad
from Not Without Salt
makes about 4 entree-sized salads
sprinkling sweet paprika (you can always add more; ours was a bit too much!)
sprinkling cayenne pepper
3-4 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons water
¾ teaspoon maple syrup
1½ pound flank steak or skirt steak, preferably grass-fed (if not grass-fed, trim a bit if needed)
Salt and pepper, coarsely ground
3 shallots, sliced thin
1½ cups fresh mint leaves, torn
1½ cups fresh cilantro leaves (I use a cilantro paste; it keeps much better than fresh herbs! I used about 1 1/2 tsp)
1 Thai chile or jalapeño, small (I usually remove most to all of the seeds, again, this will depend on how spicy you want the final dish to be)
1 seedless English cucumber, thinly sliced or peeled with a potato peeler
3-4 cups greens (I have tried it with a spring mix and spinach; great with both!)
Heat a pan/grill pan over medium high heat. Salt and pepper your meat. Add the meat to the pan and allow to cook until nicely browned and crisp on the one side (about 5 minutes); flip and repeat on the other side. Internal temp should be about 125*F. When cooked, move the meat to a piece of foil and tent to rest, 5-10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make your dressing/sauce. Combine your paprika, cayenne, lime juice, fish sauce, water, and maple syrup in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk to combine. If using the tubey cilantro, add it too before you whisk; otherwise, add your mint and cilantro now.
Peel and then thinly slice your shallots. De-seed (as desired) your pepper and thinly slice it as well. Prepare your cucumber (I often just use a peeler to get thin strips; you can simply cut it thinly too!). Add the shallots and pepper slices to your dressing.
Cut your meat into thin slices, cutting against the grain (this will make the meat VERY tender). The meat should be juicy and still nice and pink on the inside. **This is a lot of meat. We often just cut up half of it and save half to slice up fresh for leftovers. You decide how much you want per salad. Add the sliced meat to your bowl full of dressing ingredients. Gently toss the meat around.
Pile your plate/bowl high with salad greens, add the cucumber, and then grab some drippy, delicious, spicy meat pieces and place on top of the greens. Make sure you get some delicious pepper and shallots on there too! If you want, drizzle a bit more of the "dressing" onto your greens (we've never found that necessary). Consume and repeat for lunch the next day.