Green Papaya Salad with Grilled Steak

This is Bobby Flay's take on a Vietnamese staple. I made a few changed to his recipe, using my own version of Nuoc Cham as the salad dressing. The recipe is a bit labor intensive (julienning the papaya taking the most time), but you get a refreshing result. A great salad for a summer night.

Steak Marinade

 

- 4 cloves garlic, chopped

- 1 Thai chile pepper, chopped

- 2 tbsp soy sauce

- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice

- 2 tbsp honey

- 1/4 cup oil

- 1.5 lb beef (tenderloin is a good choice)

1) Place all ingredients in a bag and marinate for 30-60 min.

Nuoc Cham (aka Viet Dipping Sauce)

- 3 tbsp fresh like juice

- 2 tbsp honey

- 1/2 cup water

- 2.5 tbsp fish sauce

- 1 small garlic clove, crushed

1) Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Let sot for at least 30 min. Makes 3/4 cup.

Papaya Salad Ingredients

- 1 whole green papaya, julienned

- a bunch of watercress, chopped

- half a cucumber, chopped

- fresh cilantro for garnishing

- 1 whole avocado, sliced

RECIPE DIRECTIONS

Ever seen a green papaya?

1) Peel the papaya, then chop it in half. Here's what you'll see...

2) Scoop out the seeds, and with your julienne tool, julienne the papaya so that you get a big pile of spaghetti looking strings.

3) Pour 2/3 of the dressing over the papaya. This will sweat the papaya a bit (water will release from the papaya itself.

4) Cook the steak on your favorite iron skillet to a beautiful rare. (Or, if you're a chicken, medium rare. Anything more done than that you probably shouldn't even be reading this blog.)

5) When the steak is done, set aside to 5 minutes on a plate. (It's still cooking.)

6) Add watercress, cucumber and cilantro to the papaya. Mix it all together. (Don't be afraid to use your hands.)

7) Plate the papaya salad, making sure to let any excess dressing drop off before placing it on your plate or in your bowl.

8) Ice the avocado and steak and arrange on top of the salad.

9) Drizzle the remaining dressing on the salad, and enjoy!