Summer Thai
Vanya Insull impressed a beach hen party with this simple dish
Vhome cook and baker who runs the hugely popular VJ Cools pages on Instagram and Facebook.
She lives in Taupō with her husband and two sons. VJ Cooks continues to grow, with 110,000 followers on Instagram and more than 7 million visits to her recipe website vjcooks. com in 2022.
Summer Favourites offers relaxed, classic Kiwi recipes with a summer light feel. It is destined to be one of your most well-thumbed cookbooks, with dishes to tickle the tastebuds of even the fussiest of eaters.
THAI BEEF SALAD
I made a double recipe of this salad when we went to a beach house for my friend’s hen party. I made the dressing at home and took it along in a jar. The rest of it was so simple to make and everyone was so impressed.
Ingredients
600g (1lb 5oz) rump steak
1 Tbsp olive oil salt and cracked black pepper, to season
100g vermicelli noodles
130g mesclun
100g sugar snap peas, finely sliced 100g bean sprouts
1⁄2 cucumber, finely sliced
1⁄2 red capsicum, finely sliced
1⁄2 red onion, finely sliced
1⁄2 cup chopped fresh mint
1⁄4 cup crushed roasted peanuts
Thai Dressing
1/4 cup low-salt soy sauce 2 Tbsp fish sauce
2 Tbsp lime juice
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed 1 tsp crushed ginger
Method
To make the Thai Dressing, whisk the ingredients in a small jug. Chill until needed.
Coat the steak in the oil then season with salt and pepper.
Heat a frying pan or barbecue to a high heat and cook the steak for 2–4 minutes on each side until done to your liking. Allow to rest while you prepare the salad, then carve into thin strips.
Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions. Drain well.
To assemble the salad, arrange the noodles and mesclun on a large serving platter. Scatter with the sugar snaps, bean sprouts, cucumber, capsicum and onion.
Top with the steak strips, mint and peanuts.
Drizzle with some of the dressing just before serving. Leave the rest in a jug on the side so each person can add extra.
Tips and tricks
Cook the steak to your preference and that of your guests. Medium rare is nice and tender.