A Unique and Tasty Salad with an Asian Twist

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I am honoring Sara Moulton this month, cooking recipes out of her “Everyday Family Dinners” cookbook. I met Sara several years ago while attending her cooking class. At the time, I took home this cookbook thinking it looked intriguing. I had been cooking out of her “Sara Moulton Cooks at Home” book for several years and really loved her recipes. Unfortunately, as is the case with many others, this cookbook has been sitting and collecting dust on my book shelf. So I decided to dust it off and jump in with both hands researching and experimenting with many of the recipes. It has been a great adventure as I have found many interesting and delicious dishes, several becoming my new favorites to revisit again!

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This dish caught my eye since I had some fresh snap peas and radishes in my produce drawer from my Talley Farms CSA box and wanted something new and different to try with them. I love the combination she created of mixing the brown rice with radishes, scallions and snap peas and then coating it with an asian vinaigrette. Honestly, this mixture on its own makes a delicious salad – very refreshing. Adding the grilled sirloin with a drizzle of wasabi dressing makes it a full meal and compliments the rice mixture to a tee!

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Rice, Radish and Snap Pea Salad with Seared Beef

Serves 4

Ingredients
 
For the Salad and Beef
  • 1 cup brown rice
  • 1 to 1 1/2 pounds pounds top loin or sirloin steak, cut 1 1/2 inches thick
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1/4 pound sugar snap peas, strings removed
  • 4 large radishes
  • 4 medium scallions
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons prepared wasabi
  • 1 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce
For the Sesame Dressing
  • 1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Instructions
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Stir in the rice; reduce the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, for about 45 minutes for brown rice or until tender.
Meanwhile, prepare the Sesame Dressing (makes 1/2 cup)
  1. Whisk together 1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar and 1 teaspoon sugar until the sugar has dissolved. Whisk in 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, and 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil.
  2. When the rice is tender, drain it, rinse it in cold water, thoroughly drain it again, and toss it with the Sesame Dressing in a medium bowl. Meanwhile, season the steak on all sides with salt and pepper. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium heat until very hot. Cook the steak, turning once, for about 3 to 5 minutes per side for medium-rare. Remove the steak to a plate and set it aside.
  3. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil over high heat; prepare a medium bowl of ice and water. Add the whole pea pods to the boiling water; return the water to a boil, remove and drain the peas, and plunge them into the ice and water. When the peas have cooled, drain them thoroughly and pat them dry. Cut them crosswise into 1/2-inch thick slices (about 1 cup). Halve the radishes through the root, lay them flat, and thinly slice them (about 1 cup). Trim and thinly slice the scallions (about 1/2 cup). Add the cut pea pods, radishes, and scallions to the rice and toss to combine.
  4. Make the wasabi dressing. Whisk together the sour cream, steak juices form the steak plate, wasabi, and soy sauce in a small bowl.
  5. To serve, mound some of the rice salad mixture in the center of each of 4 plates. Thinly slice the meat and arrange some slices on top of each portion of rice salad. Drizzle with the wasabi dressing.
Notes
  • The original recipe calls for chilling the steak after cooking and serving it cold with the salad. I found this step unnecessary and preferred serving the steak warm as it retains some juiciness that way.

(click here) for printable recipe

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