Thai beef salad is a fresh and colorful meal made with tender steak, crisp cucumber, juicy tomatoes, red onion and cilantro tossed in a zesty lime, fish sauce and chili pepper dressing. Served over lettuce, it strikes the perfect balance of savory, tangy and spicy in every bite. It comes together quickly and works perfectly for a light dinner, lunch or meal prep.
Thai beef salad has been one of my favorite salads for well over a decade. It checks all the boxes for me with tender protein, crisp leafy greens, fresh vegetables, fragrant herbs, and a spicy, tangy dressing with an umami kick. It is hearty enough to serve as a main dish, but also works beautifully as a side salad alongside another meal. You can even use it for meal prep if you serve it over rice or wait to add the leafy greens until just before serving. Or eat it straight from the mixing bowl while standing over the kitchen sink. I won't tell. It's about as close to a perfect all around dish as you can get.
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Ingredients
- Top sirloin steak
- Fish sauce
- Lime juice
- Thai red chili peppers
- White sugar
- English cucumber
- Grape or cherry tomatoes
- Red onion
- Cilantro
- Red or green leaf lettuce (optional)
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Use this section for process shots, alternating between the step and image showing the step.
Step 1: Remove the steak from the packaging. Pat both sides dry. Season each side with salt and pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side over medium high heat until medium doneness.
Step 2: Add the fish sauce, lime juice, chopped Thai red chili peppers and sugar into a medium bowl. Mix to dissolve the sugar.
Step 3: Slice the steak and add it into the dressing.
Step 4: Toss the steak in the dressing. Note that the lime juice will reduce the pinkness of the steak. This is normal.
Step 5: Chop and add the cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion and cilantro. Toss well. Serve over a bed of red or green leaf lettuce.
Substitutions and Variations
- Gluten free - this salad is naturally gluten free if you are using gluten free fish sauce as well.
- Top sirloin steak - you can easily substitute another cut of beef. Top sirloin tends to have the perfect thickness for a salad. I would recommend substituting another cut that's about one inch thick. You can also substitute an entirely different cut of beef and cut the meat into bite size pieces instead of slices as well.
- Thai chili peppers - if you cannot find red or green Thai chili peppers, you can substitute a jalapeño or other hot chili pepper. Start with ½ of a jalapeño for every Thai chili pepper. You can also take the seeds out of a jalapeño if you want a less spicy pepper.
- English cucumbers - I love English cucumbers as they are less watery, but you can also use a regular cucumber. As regular cucumbers are more watery, it's best to deseed them before using them in this salad.
- Tomatoes - I love using grape or cherry tomatoes as they aren't as juicy as regular tomatoes. You can also substitute 2 Roma (or other small) tomatoes, but it would be best to deseed the tomatoes before chopping them for the salad.
- Red or green leaf lettuce - while red or green leaf lettuce is a traditional lettuce served with Thai beef salad, you can substitute your favorite lettuce. Or skip the lettuce entirely and serve the salad on its own or over room temperature rice.
Equipment
A cast iron skillet, or a regular skillet or sauté pan is needed to cook the steak.
Storage
Store Thai beef salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 to 3 days. Store any lettuce separately.
Next Level Tips
- Thai chili peppers start green and turn red as they ripen. If you can only find a package of green or mostly green Thai chili peppers, it's ok to buy it and give them a few days to ripen. Or you can use the peppers when they are green. I find that they are not as spicy, so you may need to add another pepper.
- But if you have a big package of Thai chili peppers, what do you do with the rest? When they are green, I use them in regular green salads to give them a little kick. You can also add Thai chili peppers (red or green) to dishes like spicy ground chicken stir fry with green beans or kimchi tofu stir fry with veggies to kick up the heat.
- Thai beef salad is one of my favorite salads. But you don't actually have to serve it over lettuce. For years, I ate this over room temperature rice and it's fantastic. Just cook the rice and allow it to come to room temperature or slightly warm. Spoon the Thai beef salad over the rice or serve the rice on the side to be used with multiple sides. So good!
FAQ
If you have an Asian grocery store nearby, Thai chili peppers can be found in the bulk bins by the other peppers. This is nice as you can buy only the number you need. Thai chili peppers are also found in many regular grocery stores in little clear plastic containers (about the size of strawberry containers) near the other hot peppers. In the regular grocery store, the packs of Thai chili peppers are often green with maybe a few starting to turn red. This is fine as they go from green to red as they ripen. You can also use the Thai chilies when they are still green, but they will be milder. You may want to add an extra one.
MSG, or monosodium glutamate, is commonly used in Thai cooking for umami flavor and as a flavor enhancer. While many Thai beef salad recipes include MSG, I personally don't cook with it. Instead, I use a small amount of sugar to balance the fish sauce, which already provides plenty of great umami flavor. The combination creates a well balanced dressing without the need for MSG.
No, it's not necessary for this recipe. And, according to an article from Serious Eats titled 7 Myths About Steak that Need to Go Away, it's never necessary. It's a great read if you want to learn more about cooking steaks.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Thai Beef Salad
Equipment
- 1 cast iron or regular skillet
Ingredients
- 1 pound top sirloin steak
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and pepper to season steak
- 4 tablespoons fish sauce
- 3 tablespoons lime juice
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1-2 small Thai red chili peppers* finely chopped
- ½ of a long English cucumber halved and sliced
- 1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes halved or quartered
- ¼ cup red onion thinly sliced
- 1 small bunch fresh cilantro finely chopped
- 1 head red or green leaf lettuce chopped
Instructions
- Remove the steak from the packaging and pat both sides dry with paper towels. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
- Heat a cast iron (or regular) skillet over medium high heat. Once hot, add one tablespoon of olive oil and the steak. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side, or until the steak reaches 140 ℉ for medium doneness. I also like to sear the edges.
- Set the steak aside on a cutting board to rest for 10 minutes. While it rests, prepare the dressing and chop the vegetables.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the fish sauce, lime juice, sugar and chopped Thai red chili peppers until the sugar is dissolved.
- After the steak has rested, slice it thinly against the grain into bite sized pieces. Add the steak to the dressing and toss to coat. As the steak sits in the dressing, the lime juice will gradually turn any pink areas brown. This is normal.
- Add the cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion and cilantro to the bowl. Toss until everything is evenly coated with the dressing.
- Arrange the lettuce on individual plates or in a large serving bowl. Using a slotted spoon, spoon the Thai beef salad over the lettuce. Drizzle additional dressing from the bowl over the top, if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
- Spiciness is a personal preference, so adjust the Thai red chili peppers to your taste. One small Thai red chili pepper will give the dressing a mild to medium kick, while 2 peppers will create a solid medium to moderately spicy heat level. If you like your food very spicy, use 3 or more peppers. Be sure to finely chop the chilies or crush them with a mortar and pestle so they blend evenly into the dressing.
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