Twelve or so years ago, when Thai cuisine was viewed as a relatively novel ethnic cuisine, and one which we enjoy, we happened on a very useful publication from Australian Women’s Weekly. Page 32 has recipes for red, green and massaman curry pastes. This last, I have made often, although, I confess, not for a while.
But I digress. One of our favourite summer suppers is based on the beef salad in this book.
I have made this with beef, and not, I might add, with rump, but rather with a hunk of stewing steak which when rare, and cut across the grain, works just as well. Some (i.e. The Husband) would say it’s better because it’s more flavourful. That said, we have this salad most often with ostrich.
At the time we discovered aforementioned book, ostrich meat was cheaper than beef. That’s changed. For two reasons: flocks took a serious knock with the avian flu pandemic, but more importantly, ostrich is a not a “red” meat: like chicken, it is lean. Which brings me back to The Husband who, as regular readers know, is a dedicated, salad-eating carnivore who has been both a beef and poultry farmer. Early on in our relationship, my suggestion that we have ostrich was met with, “Why would I want to eat ‘big chicken’? Chicken isn’t meat!”
He and the local boere* are of a mind: chicken is amper vleis.* *
To cut a long story short, he was persuaded to try it – at least once – and although not immediately a convert, was game to try it again. Preferably disguised as something else. This salad does exactly that.
What I do
Having followed this recipe to the letter, I discovered that the inclusion of the chopped herbs in the dressing, which is actually the basting sauce, was a mistake. If you’re searing the meat on a smoking hot, cast iron griddle, the herbs (and garlic) char. The salad ends up full of unsightly, unpleasant-tasting black bits. Instead, I combine the first four ingredients for the dressing-cum-basting and reserve the fresh coriander and mint, and depending on my mood, either leave them whole or chop them to add to the salad when I assemble it (not always in the dressing).
On this occasion, I decided to serve the meat separately from the rest of the salad. The sliced, seared ostrich was presented on a bed of coriander and mint, with a mixed salad.
Where I’ve needed to include a starch, I’ve also served this on a bed of rice noodles, making it a great summer supper.
* farmers
* * almost meat
This is great Fiona. Love your use of ostrich in place of beef. I don’t have that Australian Women’s Weekly cookbook so I’ll have to check it out of the library. I make red and green curry, so it will be great to have new recipes to try.
Peggy, they’re very little books, published about 2002 – series of different themes including barbecued seafood, which is another we have. Alas, because of the dearth of fish and now living inland, we seldom get fresh sea fish let alone anything else.
There is a beef curry recipe with the Massaman paste which is great. Can e-mail it to you if you want.
Great Post
Thank you!
welcome
hmmm… Looks so yummy!!!
Please visit and follow my blog (www.lazymomcooking.wordpress.com) or my Instagram (lazymom_cooking) for some recipe ideas
Will check it out in the morning…
sounds delicious, but what are lebanese cucumbers?
Actually, Lorie, I’m not sure, I’ll check on that. I confess to just having ignored that “Lebanese” bit and using English cucumbers…. 😛
i wonder what the difference is, i will check too
Like the English cucumber, Lebanese cucumbers are nearly seedless. East Asian cucumbers are mild, slender, deep green, and have a bumpy, ridged skin. They can be used for slicing, salads, pickling, etc., and are available year-round. They are usually burpless as well.
sounds like english cukes!
Ah, thank you. We don’t seem to get the Asian ones here, but the Lebanese ones were the only ones available in my childhood and which we just knew as, yes, you guessed it, “cucumbers”!