Easy Thai Beef Salad (Larb Neua)
Beef salad is an easy, 10-minute, delicious mix of ground beef and chopped herbs, coated with fish sauce, lime juice, ground chilli and ground rice. Enjoy it as a low-calorie meal with fresh veggies.
Equipment
- Saucepan
- Strainer
- Mixing Bowl
- Sharp Kitchen Knife
- Chopping Board
Ingredients
Cooking Beef
- 300 g beef, minced
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 50 ml water, optional
Herbs
- 2 stalk cilantro, chopped
- 2 stalk spring onion, chopped
- 2 stems sweet basil, leaves only, chopped
Seasonings
- 2 tbsp lime juice, from 1 lime
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1.5 tsp roasted ground chilli
- 1.5 tbsp roasted ground rice
Vegetables to Serve with
- 1 leaf Chinese Cabbage, cut to squares
- 3 stalks basil leaves
- 1/2 Japanese cucumber, cut to strips
- 3 long beans
- 2 red chilli, Cayenne pepper
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add the beef and salt. Mix until well-combined. Stir for about 2.5 minutes, or until the beef is fully cooked and grey. If no gravy is released, add water.
- Switch off the heat. Strain the minced beef and set it aside to cool in a large mixing bowl, for about 5 to 10 minutes.
- Pluck the basil leaves from their stems. Chop the cilantro, spring onions and basil leaves. Set aside on a plate.
- Slice the shallots thinly and set them aside on the herb plate.
- Roll the lime hard against the chopping board. Cut into 3 pieces, avoiding the core. Squeeze the lime to get lime juice. Alternatively, use unsweetened, ready-made lime juice.
- Once the minced beef has cooled down, add the seasonings: fish sauce, roasted ground chilli, and lime juice. Mix well.
- Taste and adjust.
- Mix in the herbs and shallots until well-combined.
- Add roasted ground rice and mix until combined.
- Serve with raw vegetables and steamed rice.
Notes
Tips
- This Beef Salad dish should be very dry, with little to no gravy present. Therefore, be very stingy with adding water and avoid it if possible.
- The strained beef gravy can be saved to add to other stir-fry (beef) dishes or made into a light stock for one-dish soup.
- The minced beef needs to be fully cooled before mixing with the herbs as any residual heat will cause them to wilt, removing the fresh and crispy texture of the Beef Salad. Spread it out in a mixing bowl to cool rapidly.
- If you have great control, use your elbows to roll the limes. It usually hurt less than using the palms. Rolling them breaks the fibres within, making it easier to squeeze the juices.
- Adjust the amount of ground chilli according to your spicy tolerance level. The minced beef should be spicy, tangy and salty (umami) before the herbs are added.
- Ground rice is a central part of the Beef Salad; it brings fragrance, concentrates the flavours and helps "dry" the salad further. However, if preferred, it can be omitted as some prefer the salad to be not as dry.
- Apart from the fresh (and raw) vegetables, Beef Salad can also be served with boiled okra, boiled long beans, steamed cabbages, and steamed eggplants.
- Although it is traditionally served with steamed sticky rice (Thai glutinous rice), it can also be eaten with steamed white medium-grain rice; or skip the rice and enjoy as a vegetable wrap!
- Watch the video to see how exactly I made it to ensure success!
Nutrition
Calories: 303kcalCarbohydrates: 24gProtein: 20gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 65mgSodium: 238mgPotassium: 237mgFiber: 12gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 82IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 34mgIron: 3mg
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