FULL OF & FLAVOUR

Smoky stir-fried beef with chilli jam & onion

It’s important to have the wok explosively hot and to cook quickly. If you get the temperature right, the beef will be rare in the middle and smoky and charred on the outside.

QServes 2

4 banana shallots, unpeeled 1 lemongrass stalk

½ garlic bulb, unpeeled

3 long red chillies

4 tbsp vegetable oil

250g beef steak, bavette or onglet, sliced across the grain into

3cm chunks

1 white onion, sliced into 1cm chunks 1 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp white vinegar

1 tbsp palm sugar, or 1 tsp caster sugar 2 tbsp tamarind paste steamed jasmine rice, sliced cucumber and coriander or Thai basil leaves, to serve (optional)

1 Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. 2 Put the shallots, lemongrass, garlic and chillies on a non-stick baking tray and drizzle with half the oil. Roast on the top shelf of the oven for 25-30 mins until softened (the lemongrass may need another 5-10 mins). Leave to cool.

3 Peel the skin from the garlic and shallots and discard. Roughly chop the chillies, remove the tough outer layer from the lemongrass and thinly slice. Crush everything to a coarse paste using a pestle and mortar or food processor.

4 Heat the remaining oil in a non-stick wok over a high heat until almost smoking. Stir-fry the beef and onion until the beef is browned on all sides and the onion has started to caramelise. Add the chilli paste and continue to fry for a minute or so – you may need to scrape the wok as the paste will stick a little. Reduce the heat and deglaze the wok with the fish sauce, vinegar, sugar and tamarind paste. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.

5 Pile the beef into bowls with the juices from the pan and serve with the rice, cucumber and herbs, if you like.