Think of it as barbecue over barbecue. The beef is cooked in American style barbecue sauce; the dressing is a Southeast Asian barbecue sauce.
The vegetables are a mix of East and West too. Lettuce is arguably the most common salad green in the West; bean sprout is one of the most popular salad vegetables in Asia. Together, they’re just wonderful. Light crispness of the lettuce plus the moist crunchiness of the bean sprouts.
About the bean sprouts… When you buy them, note that there are short thin ones and long plump ones. For salads, the long ones are preferable. They retain their shape and texture better.
What Southeast Asian barbecue sauce is used as salad dressing here? It’s the same peanut sauce you’d dip your satay in — sweet, salty, tangy, spicy and ultra creamy.
Beef brisket BBQ salad
Ingredients
- 300 to 400 grams slow cooker beef brisket BBQ
- 2 bunches lettuce - (we like Romaine!)
- 3 to 4 cups fresh bean sprouts
- ¼ cup chopped cashew nuts
Peanut dressing
- ½ cup smooth peanut butter
- juice of one lime
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 to 2 shallots - peeled and grated
- 1 one-inch knob ginger - peeled and grated
- 1 bird’s eye chili - deseeded and very finely chopped
- fish sauce - to taste
Instructions
- Cut the beef into thin slices.
- Rinse the lettuce and break up unto bite-size pieces. Pass through the salad spinner to remove as much water as possible.
- Dump the bean sprouts in a large bowl and fill with water. Pick out bean skins that float and discard. Pour off the water. Rinse the sprouts a few times and drain.
- Pass through the salad spinner (don’t overdo this!) to remove surface water.
- Toast the cashew nuts in an oil-free pan until lightly browned. Cool.
- To make the dressing, start by thinning the peanut butter. Place in a bowl, add a quarter cup of hot water and mix until smooth.
- Add the rest of the salad dressing ingredients to the peanut butter and mix well.
- Add more hot water, a tablespoon at a time, until the dressing is pourable (note that I used a total of one-half cup hot water).
- In a large mixing bowl, toss the beef, lettuce and bean sprouts.
- Drizzle the dressing over the salad.
- Sprinkle in the cashew nuts.
- Serve the remaining dressing on the side.
