Num Tok (Thai Beef Salad)
2007-08-25
Chris Shenton

The restaurant Thai Thai across from our house has a great appetiser
of beef flank steak which seems grilled then seasoned with a lime and
chili sauce like Larb Gai. I'm trying to figure out how to make it.
Apparently, it's also made with other cuts of beef (fillet, ribeye,
...)  and with pork.  Thai Thai serves it warm (?) on a bed of lettuce
but others serve it with sticky rice.

Oddly, the recipes I've found do not specify the ubiquitous Fish Sauce;
neither have they specified Garlic though Jennifer Brennan's book's
recipe for Beef Salad (Yam Neua) uses both, as well as Lemon Grass.
Some folks' recipes add Galangal or Basil.

Google "thai beef salad" gets hits on "Laab Neua", "Yam Neua", etc.

Pork:
http://www.khiewchanta.com/archives/main-courses/pork-recipes/grilled-spicy-pork-onion-num-t.html

"Yam Neua" ("Yam" = "salad") is similarly close, not ground:
http://www.templeofthai.com/recipes/thai_beef_salad.php
http://importfood.com/recipes/thaibeefsalad.html

This one sounds very close, but I'd skip the tomato:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Thai-Beef-Salad/Detail.aspx

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12	ounce	Beef Flank Steak
1/4	whole	Red or Green or Yellow Onion or Shallots, sliced fine
1/2	tsp	Dried Chili, ground
8	leaves	Mint, fresh, chiffonade
8	leaves	Cilantro, chiffonade
2	tsp	Lime Juice
1	Tbs	Parched Rice (rice, toasted, ground)

Grill Beef over hot BBQ or under broiler until slightly charred
but rare in the center, a few minutes per side; let cool.
Slice Beef across grain into thin 1/8 - 1/4 inch thick slices.
Add Chili, Mint, Cilantro, Parched Rice, Lime Juice
and toss well.
Serve immediately while still fragrant over rice or lettuce.