As you all know, the holidays are here and because of that I get to spend more time with the hubs and also have more time and energy to spend making things in the kitchen! And I have to admit, I’m loving it! (: Not needing to rush the cooking process to get food on the table after work and cooking the same dishes over and over again. No more clock-work, not for the next 2 and a half weeks anyways!

Remember the lemongrass beef vermicelli salad we had at MissChu’s a few days back? The mr loved it so much, he asked me to try and make him some for dinner a few nights back. And so I did! Looking for recipes to help me make some lemongrass beef and off to the market I went and straight back into the kitchen.

So glad I did give this a shot. It was so so good, the Mr said he doesn’t mind having it every day! hehe I decided to just make up my own dressing for the salad, according to what I thought I tasted. haha Thankfully, it turned out really well. Sour, sweet and just a tad bit of spicy! So do give it a try! It’s really something I wouldn’t mind having every day and you could easily change the protein! I’ve tried it with chicken and it was super yums as well! Might try it with prawns or a firm fish as well. hehe but if you like red meat, can never really go wrong with beef! (:

This was the chicken thigh fillet version. Works equally well! (:

Lemongrass Beef Rice Vermicelli Salad

For marinade (adapted from epicurious.com)

1 stalk fresh lemongrass, finely chop the tender part (about 6-inches of the bottom)

4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

2 tbs fish sauce

1 tbs light soy sauce

3 tsp caster sugar

2 tbs vegetable oil

1/2 tsp sesame oil

500g beef scotch fillet (or other proteins you like)

Preparation :

Mix all the ingredients for the marinade and marinade the steaks in a large ziplock bag or container. Place it in the fridge and allow it to marinade for at least 2 hours. The longer you marinade, the tastier it gets!

For the dressing :

4 tbs sweet chilli sauce

2 tbs white wine vinegar

1 tsp sugar

1 tbs fish sauce

For the salad :

150g dried rice vermicelli (the thicker ones)

25g bean shoots/sprouts (blanched and cooled)

150g mixed salad leaves (washed and spun dry)

1/4 cup coriander (wash well and spun dry)

1 lebanese cucumber (deseeded and thinly sliced diagonally)

2 tbs fried shallots, for garnish

Steps :

1) In a large bowl, soak the noodles in hot water for 15 minutes. Drain noodles and blanch it in hot water. Careful not to leave it too long in the boiling water, as it will turn too soft (1 min max). Still want the noodles to have a bit of a bounce. Run the noodles under cold water to stop them from cooking further. Set aside while preparing the beef.

2) Preheat the oven at 200 degrees celcius. Heat a non-stick pan on high heat and sear both sides of the scotch fillets. Place them on a baking rack and bake them for 10 minutes. While waiting, prepare the salad dressing.

3) For the dressing : Mix all the ingredients together until well combined and sugar has dissolved completely. Taste it and you can adjust the amounts of vinegar or sugar depending on your personal taste.

4) Take the beef out and place it on a chopping board and let it stand for 3-4 minutes. Slice diagonally.

5) Plating up : Place the salad leaves and half of the coriander at the bottom of the bowl. Then pour the dressing a tablespoon at a time, mixing and coating the salad leaves well (about 1-2 tbs). Top the salad leaves with the noodles and the sliced cucumber. Place the beef on top of the noodles, garnishing with the rest of the coriander and the fried shallots. Drizzle another tablespoon of dressing over the top and serve.

ENJOY! (:

The Mr definitely enjoyed his salad, look how clean it is! hehe (:

So here you go, an asian spin to the usual salad just so you got more options now! hehe Hope you all will like it as much as we do!