the best steak salad ever
tangy, crunchy, light + perfect for a protein princess
let me start off by saying this salad is giving “a man’s salad”- i’m literally presenting you with a plate of steak on top of noodles. and calling it a salad. that’s how deep we are into becoming protein princesses. but there’s more to it I sweeear and really, it’s freaking bomb.
I’ve been making this salad for years (I’ve shared this recipe a few years ago but have further made some improvements) I initially referenced this dish by the name yum nua (thai) but then felt like it was falling similarly towards bun bo xao (vietnamese). I’ve kind of landed on a mix of the two here - yum nua typically has no rice noodles and bun bo is stir fried beef with carrot + cucumber salad heavy.
we’re going with a grilled skirt steak situation here (bc summer) I also leaned into more of a 70:30 vegetable to noodle ratio here to make it extra fresh, crunchy, satiating and juiiicy. I love cutting the peppers and cucumbers in ribbons/julienne so they almost become part of the noodle base. the tomatoes release their juices into the dressing and coat the noodles so wonderfully. it hits all the spots for a summer lunch or dinner imo - quick, easy and refreshing yet filling. I’ve added watermelon radishes before for further crunch - it’s really up to you. do more noodles, do less, do none at all (although……that would be sad)
I also love eating this deconstructed with bib lettuce cups. noodles on the side, dressing on the side, vegetables + herbs on the side. big plate of freshly grilled steak in the center. a build your own adventure if you will.
which by the way - this works phenomenally with chicken thighs or shrimp prepared the same way. I just had the chicken variation the other week for a very impromptu dinner with friends at our place and we all lost our damn minds. maybe we were just really hungry idk. but try it out and lmk!
