Lemongrass beef skewers with vietnamese noodle salad

Serves

Prep Time

Cook Time

Ingredients

600g Rump steak, fat trimmed

Marinade

1 stick Lemongrass, trimmed and outer leaves removed (or 1½ tbsp of lemongrass paste)

2 Garlic cloves, peeled

1 tsp Fish sauce

1 tsp Cracked black pepper

2 tsp Caster sugar

Salad

4 large Lettuce leaves, torn (oakleaf, butter or baby cos varieties)

350g Softened vermicelli rice noodles

1 cup Loosely packed mint leaves

2 medium Carrots, shaved into ribbons

2 Lebanese cucumbers, deseeded and sliced

1 medium Yellow capsicum, cut into strips

100g Snow peas, sliced

Dressing

2 tbsp Lime juice

1 tbsp Fish sauce

3 tsp Caster sugar

1 Red chilli, finely chopped (optional)

Pound the Beef to a 1cm thickness. Cut into long, wide slices and place in a bowl with the marinade. Stir to combine, cover and set aside for 30 minutes.
Preheat a chargrill or barbeque to moderately hot. Thread the Beef onto skewers.
Grill the Beef skewers for 1½ minute on each side or until cooked to your liking.
Mix the salad ingredients with the dressing and place on a large platter. Top with the Beef skewers and serve. Alternatively try serving Beef skewers with the salad in individual bowls or noodle boxes.
To make the marinade: Finely chop the lemongrass and garlic and pound in a mortar and pestle until it becomes a coarse paste. Add the fish sauce, pepper and sugar and stir to combine. If using paste, add it to the crushed garlic, fish sauce, pepper and sugar, and combine.
To make the dressing: Stir the ingredients together and set aside.

To pound the Beef, place between 2 pieces of cling film on a chopping board and beat with a meat mallet or rolling pin.
If you have extra lemongrass sticks you can thread the raw Beef onto trimmed lemongrass and cook as usual. Simply cut the thin end of the trimmed lemongrass into a pointso you can thread the Beef easily.
If you are cooking with bamboo/wooden skewers on the barbecue, allow them to soak in water for 30 minutes to prevent them from burning.
If you don't have a mortar and pestle you can make the marinade in a small food processor.