Lemongrass Beef Skewers
Skirt beef is a really lean cut that cooks quickly over a hot, direct heat. Due to the high heat, metal skewers are recommended as wooden ones often burn, even if you soak them in water.
Servings
4
Ingredients
- 600g skirt steak
- 2 lemongrass stalks
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns, crushed
- 2 banana shallots, very finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 tsp caster (superfine) sugar
- 3 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 limes, halved
- To serve:
- cooked egg noodles, tossed in sesame oil
- 1 bunch of spring onions, thinly sliced
- a handful of coriander, chopped
- 3–4 bird’s eye chillies, finely chopped, to taste
- You will also need 4 metal skewers
Method
- Begin by wrapping the beef in baking parchment and freezing it for two hours. Briefly freezing the meat will firm it up and make it easier to slice thinly. While the beef is in the freezer, make the marinade. Discard the outer leaves of the lemongrass stalks and very finely chop the inner core. Put in a bowl with the crushed peppercorns, shallots, garlic, caster (superfine) sugar, fish sauce and vegetable oil and mix well. Set aside.
- Take the beef out of the freezer and unwrap. Use a really sharp knife to cut into 3mm slices, cutting across the grain. Add the beef to the marinade and mix thoroughly to coat the meat. Cover and refrigerate for one to two hours.
- When you are ready to cook, fire up the barbecue ready for direct cooking. Thread the beef strips onto the skewers. Put the skewers on the grill directly above the fire, lower the lid and cook for seven to eight minutes, turning a few times until cooked to your liking. To serve, pile the noodles onto plates and top with a beef skewer. Squeeze over the lime juice and scatter over the spring onions, coriander and chillies.
Foolproof BBQ by Genevieve Taylor (Quadrille, £12.99) Photography ©Jason Ingram
