asian steak salad Asian Steak Salad
recipe
You hear a lot about focus these days. Athletes, businesspeople and politicians frequently talk about how getting and staying focused is important to success. In the kitchen, focus is crucial to successful quick-cooked meals.
It means the question, “How was your day, dear?” should be asked and answered while eating dinner, not cooking it. No sipping of wine, listening to the news on the radio or sifting through the mail. Get in there and get it done, then be as leisurely as you want afterwards.
The beauty of my Cooking to Beat the Clock recipes is that they are designed to be cooked by one person. I honestly think it’s easier for one person to handle the task, especially in a small kitchen. Two people can get in each other’s way. Let the person who isn’t cooking do everything else, from setting the table to feeding the cat.
To help you get and stay focused, read the entire recipe through before you start cooking. This will not only tell you the ingredients you need but the equipment as well. You don’t want to go searching for a pot in the middle of cooking, only to find it dirty in the dishwasher, or not find it at all.
Give yourself as much counter space as possible, even if it means putting a few things on the floor temporarily. The kitchen where the recipes in my book were tested was so small I routinely used the top of the refrigerator and the microwave oven as holding areas.
Being focused means you’ll not only get the job done quickly but safely. If you think you are sacrificing safety for speed, slow down. Better to take an extra minute chopping that onion than lose the tip of your finger.
This dish has several spice elements in it, though it’s not hot spicy. So a Syrah or Shiraz, even one with fairly high alcohol (which normally accentuates hot peppers) would be my first choice, followed by Petite Sirah and Zinfandel.
Asian Steak Salad top
20-ounce flank steak or London broil cut
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup peanut oil
1 small head Chinese or Napa cabbage or romaine lettuce, no more than 1 pound
1 bunch watercress
3 scallions
1 large red bell pepper
3 to 4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, as large as possible
1/3 cup packed cilantro leaves
One 2-inch piece fresh ginger
1 large clove garlic
1 lime
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce or soy sauce
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
Cayenne pepper to taste
1) Turn on a gas grill. (Or put a cast iron skillet over high heat on a stove top.) Season the steak with salt and pepper and brush with 1 tablespoon of the peanut oil. Grill (or pan fry) for 5 minutes on each side for medium rare. Then remove to a cutting board.
2) Meanwhile, cut off and discard the bottom inch of the cabbage and remove any damaged or withered parts from the tops of the leaves. Cut crosswise into strips 3/8 to 1/2-inch wide. Put into a salad spinner. Cut off and discard the bottom inch of the watercress stems. Halve the rest of the watercress crosswise and add to the cabbage. Fill the salad spinner with water, drain, and spin dry. Wrap the cabbage and watercress in paper towels to remove excess moisture.
3) While the greens are drying, trim the ends of the scallions and cut the green and white parts thinly, crosswise. Cut the top from the bell pepper. Stand it upright and cut down inside the four walls, separating them from the center core and seeds. Then cut the walls into thin strips. Remove and discard the stems from the mushrooms and thinly slice the mushroom caps. Coarsely chop the cilantro. Put the scallions, bell pepper, mushrooms, and cilantro in a large serving bowl.
4) Peel and halve the ginger. Peel the garlic. With the motor running, drop the ginger and garlic down the chute of a food processor and purée. Stop the motor and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Juice the lime. Add the lime juice, vinegar, fish sauce, sesame oil, the remaining peanut oil, and cayenne and salt to taste. Turn on the processor and mix until the dressing is combined.
5) Cut the steak in half with the grain. Then cut each half on the diagonal against the grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices about 2 inches long. Add the meat and juices to the vegetables. Add the dressing and toss well.
Serves 4
Per serving: 429 calories, 34 grams protein, 13 grams carbohydrate, 27 grams fat, 7.3 grams saturated fat, 71 mg cholesterol, 419 mg sodium.