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    TaraTeaspoon » Recipes » Grilling and Smoking

    Thai Beef Salad with Easy Marinade

    Published: Jun 28, 2016 · Updated: Aug 14, 2022 by Tara Teaspoon · This page contains affiliate and sponsored links. See my full disclosure

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    Pinterest image for Thai Beef Salad with text
    Thai steak salad on a platter

    Marinated flank steak gets a burst of flavor from authentic Thai flavors, sweet fruit and crunchy veggies. Arrange on a platter for an impressive, family-style situation that everyone will love.


    Healthy dinners are tricky. You want them to be filling, but light at the same time. This composed Thai beef salad hits both spot on. Plus I love composed salad (salads arranged on a platter) because they're inviting and served family-style. No fussiness with individually portioned plates.

    Thai Beef Salad

    Making Thai beef salad:

    I marinated flank steak in garlic, ginger and lime juice to really give it some juicy appeal. I've called for cooking it under the broiler (it only takes a few minutes, so the oven isn't on long), but you can throw it on the grill as well.

    The tender butter lettuce, sweet pineapple, tangy tomatoes and crunchy beans and cucumbers are the perfect salad combo to go with steak. Light and flavorful so nothing is overpowered.

    How to make a Thai salad dressing:

    The authentic dressing for the Thai beef salad is a blend of flavors including fish sauce (or nuoc nam). Thai and Vietnamese cooking use it abundantly, and I find a little goes a long way; but it's imperative for authentic flavor. There's nothing like it. It has depth of flavor and a bit of umami (that extra flavor profile). I talk about umami in my Grilled Flank Steak with Herb Salsa Verde and Black Sesame Chocolate Chip Cookie recipes.

    Thai Beef Salad

    Blanch Green Beans

    Blanching is a form of cooking that just barely cooks something. To blanch green beans and other tender vegetables, you simply boil a pot of water (I like to salt the water generously), and add the veggies. Cook for only 1 to 2 minutes, or until the vegetables are bright and just tender, not soft. Quickly remove the beans and dunk into a bowl of ice and water. This shocks the vegetables and cools them down, stopping the cooking. They retain a crisp, tender and cooked texture.

    A cool trick I learned the other day about blanching beans: You can actually freeze fresh beans and when you're ready to use them, pull them out, let them thaw and voila, blanched beans! Here's the deal––freezing vegetables expands the liquid they naturally hold inside. The cell walls break down from the liquid expanding and freezing (very similar to what happens when veggies are cooked...the cell walls break down and the veggies soften), and the frozen veggies, when thawed are slightly more tender than when they were fresh.

    This Thai beef salad uses simple ingredients to create in-depth flavors with a hint of delicious umami!

    This is the perfect trick to try on this salad! So if you've bought more beans than you can eat at Costco (often my issue), then just freeze them! Next time a recipe calls for blanching them, ignore it! Thaw those babies and you're done. Tender, cold, crunchy beans at the ready.

    Thai Steak Salad plated

    Summer is the perfect time for fresh veggies and tender grilled meats. Other ideas for tasty summer foods that your family and guests might enjoy are my Mini Greek Pita patties with Greek Yogurt Sauce and my mom's all-time favorite sandwich Sweet and Spicy Bacon Chicken Sandwich.

    📖 Recipe

    Marinated Thai Beef Salad on platter

    Thai Beef Salad

    Tara Teaspoon
    Marinated flank steak gets a burst of flavor from authentic Thai flavors, sweet fruit and crunchy veggies. 
    5 from 3 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Work Time 45 minutes mins
    Cook Time 10 minutes mins
    Total Time 50 minutes mins
    Course Main Course
    Servings 6 servings

    Ingredients
      

    • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
    • 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
    • ½ cup fresh lime juice
    • ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
    • 4 teaspoon light brown sugar
    • 2 teaspoon kosher salt
    • 2 lb flank steak
    • ½ lb green beans (trimmed)
    • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
    • 1½ teaspoon fish sauce (nuoc nam)
    • 3 tablespoon vegetable oil
    • 1 head (4 cups) Bibb or Boston lettuce
    • ¼ of a pineapple sliced into 2-inch pieces
    • 1 cup (5 oz) cherry tomatoes halved
    • ⅓ of a seedless cucumber (sliced)
    • ¼ cup sliced scallions

    Instructions
     

    • Stir together garlic, ginger, 3 tablespoon lime juice, pepper flakes, 2 teaspoon sugar and salt. Pour over steak in an ovenproof dish, coating both sides. Marinate in refrigerator 20 min.
    • Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add green beans and cook until just tender, 2 to 3 min; immediately submerge in a bowl of ice water to cool. Drain and set aside.
    • For the dressing, whisk together 5 tablespoon lime juice, soy sauce, 2 teaspoon sugar, fish sauce and oil. Transfer to a serving bowl.
    • Heat broiler to high. Broil steak 6 inches from heat, turning once, 5 min per side. Remove from oven and let rest 5 min.
    • Arrange lettuce leaves on a large platter with green beans, pineapple, tomatoes, cucumber and scallions. Slice steak across the grain and place on platter. Serve with dressing on the side.

    Notes

    Arrange everything on a pretty platter for a stunning presentation.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1gCalories: 325kcalCarbohydrates: 14gProtein: 34gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 90mgSodium: 1151mgPotassium: 821mgFiber: 2gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 1400IUVitamin C: 36.9mgCalcium: 75mgIron: 3.5mg
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    plate of thai steak salad
    Thai steak salad on a platter

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    Tara Teaspoon

    I’ve been in food publishing for over 25 years, creating recipes & food-styling for magazines, books, television, food brands, & advertising. With two cookbooks under my belt and thousands of my recipes at your fingertips, I hope you'll be inspired to spend more time in the kitchen!

    More about Tara

    Recipe by Tara Teaspoon & Vanessa Seder, LHJ 4-09. Photography Miki Duisterhof, Food Styling Jee Levin, Prop Stylist Pamela Duncan Silver.

    Comments

      5 from 3 votes

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    1. Mary says

      July 19, 2018 at 12:22 pm

      This marinade is sooo tasty!

      Reply
    2. Tessa says

      July 15, 2019 at 11:15 am

      Wow! This post is so informative! I loved learning about blanching and umami (what a fun food word!). I can't wait to make this salad.

      Reply
      • Tara says

        July 15, 2019 at 12:13 pm

        Nice! Thanks for your comment!

        Reply
    3. Lane says

      September 28, 2020 at 11:29 pm

      This is so delicious! The marinade is amazzzing and all the flavors are perfect together. Yum!

      Reply

    Hi, I'm Tara Teaspoon!

    I’ve been sharing my original ideas for years. What began as a passion, turned into a publishing career as Food Editor at Martha Stewart Living and Ladies’ Home Journal magazines.

    Now I write cookbooks, and share delicious recipes and expert cooking tips with you here! Thanks for stopping by Tara Teaspoon!

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