Keep your Thai beef rare

When I think of Thai food I think of beef salad, with its abundance of chillies and explosion of flavours. My only twist to the traditional dish is in the presentation and the fact that I use lean beef. It costs more than using strip loin or fillet of beef, but you get far less fat and a smoother texture. You just sear it to a nice pink on the inside.

This really is like “the steak tartar of the East” because you can make it in so many ways. Personalise your own preparation and have it how you like – maybe more garlic and chilli or a little more ginger. There are no rules, other than “Make it today!”

Did you know that fresh cilantro is rich in antioxidants, essential oils, vitamins and dietary fibre, all of which help reduce LDL (“bad cholesterol”) and boost HDL “good cholesterol”.

I’ve enjoyed Thai beef at so many restaurants around the country. It can be just as good made by a street vendor as at a five-star hotel. My favourite way is having it for lunch sitting poolside at the Shangri-La Hotel, soaking up the sun. My least favourite is at Suvarnabhumi Airport – saying goodbye to Thailand!

 

THAI BEEF SALAD

Serves four to six 

Preparation time 15 minutes

 

2 large lean steaks (New York strip is great) about 300g each

Handful fresh coriander leaves, chopped

Handful fresh mint leaves, chopped

2 or 3 bird’s-eye chillies, chopped finely

1 clove crushed garlic

1 tablespoon caster sugar

1 tablespoon fish sauce

Juice of 1 lemon

1 red onion, sliced

1 teaspoon soy sauce

 

In a large non-stick pan, cook the steaks for about three minutes each side. Keep the meat nice and pink on the inside.

In a large bowl, combine all the other ingredients to make the salad. When the steak is ready, slice it into ribbons and add it to the bowl to marinate in the dressing.

To serve, add most of the salad to a plate, top with the beef, and then a little more salad on top of that.

 

EGG-WHITE OMELLETTES 

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You’re supposed to eat like a king at breakfast, a prince at lunch and a pauper at suppertime. I came up with the power breakfast served every day at the Vie Hotel Bangkok and V Villas Hua Hin. 

Full of protein and filling, eggs are a must on any diet. The yolk has the fat, the whites all the protein. Just as a boiled egg makes a great snack on the go, an egg-white omelette is a perfect way to start the day. It really fills you up, and for a longer than any carbohydrate.  

On my travels I see eggs cooked many different ways for breakfast, steamed, fried and poached. I love the Asian way of just adding a dash of soy sauce to a poached egg for a fantastic snack. 

One tip: In any sort of eatery, ask that your eggs be cooked without butter, just a splash of oil instead. This cuts out more than five grams of fat per serving.

 

Serves 1

3 or 4 egg whites

Quarter cup red onion, sliced 

Quarter cup mushrooms, sliced

Quarter cup low-fat or fat-free feta cheese 

2 sun-dried tomatoes, sliced

Handful chives, chopped

 

Drizzle olive oil in a non-stick pan and caramelise the onions and mushrooms on high heat.

Remove the pan from the heat and add the egg whites with more olive oil.

Add the remaining ingredients and fold the over to enclose them.

 

British celebrity chef Daniel Green loves to create healthy recipes that are easy to follow. His column “Make It Today” – sharing his passion for good food that’s low in fat but modern and full of flavour – will appear on the last Sunday of every month.