Seared Steak Rice Noodle Bowl with Peanut Sauce
Inspired by techniques from Bon Appétit.
Wide rice noodles are piled into bowls with a lime-and-peanut sauce, thin slices of pan-seared steak, and quick-pickled carrot and cucumber, taking the flavours of a Vietnamese summer roll and turning them into a bowl you eat with chopsticks and a spoon. A dry-seared crust on the steak and a patiently whisked sauce do most of the work.
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Method
- 1
Season the steak. Pat the steak dry with paper towels, season generously all over with the fine salt, and let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.
- 2
Make the peanut sauce. Meanwhile, squeeze the 60ml lime juice into a medium bowl, then whisk in the garlic, peanut butter, soy sauce, fish sauce, maple syrup and water until smooth - it looks broken at first and takes a few minutes to come together into a sauce. Set aside.
- 3
Quick-pickle the vegetables. Put the carrot matchsticks and cucumber slices in a small bowl, pour over the remaining 30ml lime juice, and toss to combine. Set aside.
- 4
Sear the steak. Heat a dry, preferably cast-iron, frying pan over medium-high heat. Pat the steak dry again (the salt will have drawn out more moisture), then rub it all over with the oil. Cook undisturbed until a deep golden crust forms, 4-5 minutes. Turn and cook until browned on the other side and an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part reads 49 °C for medium-rare, about 5 minutes more. Stand the steak up on each edge in turn and cook about 1 minute per edge until browned there too. Transfer to a board and rest 10 minutes.
- 5
Cook the noodles. Meanwhile, add the rice noodles to a large pot of boiling water and stir to separate, then take the pot off the heat. Let the noodles sit until just cooked through, 8-10 minutes, then drain in a colander and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking.
- 6
Assemble. Slice the steak thinly against the grain. Spoon the peanut sauce into shallow bowls, pile the noodles over, then top with the steak slices, the carrot and cucumber, and the herbs.
Storage
Best assembled and eaten right away. Steak and peanut sauce keep separately in the fridge for up to 2 days. Cool leftovers in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours (within 1 hour on a day above 32°C).
EU nutrition claims
- Source of protein: 4.5 g protein per 100 kcal, about 18% of energy (needs ≥ 12%)
- Low sugars: 4.2 g sugars per 100 g (limit ≤ 5 g)
Per 100 g of the finished dish, worked out from the nutrition per serving and the lowest likely cooked weight (about 240 g a serving), so the true values are, if anything, lower. Thresholds from the Annex to EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. How we decide
Free sugars
4.5 g per serving
9 % of the 50 g daily maximum · 18 % of the ideal 25 g
Free sugars under 50 g a day, ideally about 25 g, based on WHO free-sugar guidance (not endorsed by WHO). The share shown is the share of one serving. WHO
Equipment
- chef's knife
- chopping board
- fine grater
- mixing bowls
- whisk
- cast-iron frying pan
- tongs
- instant-read thermometer
- large pot
- colander
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 792 kcal |
| Protein | 36 g |
| Carbohydrate | 110.3 g |
| of which sugars | 10.1 g |
| of which free sugars | 4.5 g |
| Fat | 23.3 g |
| of which saturates | 5 g |
| Fibre | 4.4 g |
| Salt | 5.44 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
4.5 g High Protein needs ≥ 5 g (20% of energy)
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
