Thai Steak by Jimmy's Table

One of my favorite ways to marinade and grill a steak! It’s got that delicious sweet and savory caramelized taste. It also has lots of powerful flavors from not only the fish sauce, but also the garlic, basil, cilantro, chilies, lime and deep fried shallots/garlic. Enjoy!

Ingredients (食材):

Marinade ingredients:
1 cup sugar (糖) melted to caramel (焦糖)
1 cup of hot water (熱水)
1/2 cup sugar (糖)
3-6 tablespoons fish sauce (魚露)
3 tablespoons of minced garlic (大蒜)
1-2 Spicy Red Chilis (小辣椒) - sliced and used if you want it spicy
2 Limes (青檸檬) - halved and squeezed for juice, seeds removed
1 tablespoon of garlic powder (大蒜粉)
1 tablespoon of ground black pepper (黑胡椒)

Main ingredient:
Beef Short Ribs (牛小排) (Above marinade can be used to make 5-8 steaks. Also you can substitute beef with pork neck! 上面的醬料可以用來醃5-8塊牛排

Cooking oil

Sauce ingredients:
1/2 cup of cilantro (香菜) - chopped, leaves only
1/2 cup of Thai basil (九层塔) - chopped, leaves only
2 Large “non-spicy” red chili - (大紅辣椒-非辣), cut diagonally
1-3 Spicy Red Chilis (小辣椒) - sliced and used if you want it spicy
1 tablespoon of minced garlic (大蒜)

Finishing Ingredients:
1/4 cup deep fried shallots (炸小葱头)
1/4 cup deep fried garlic (炸大蒜)

Step 1
Make caramel by adding 1 cup of sugar into a pot. Heat up the sugar until it melts, but keep an eye out on it. You can always lower the heat so it doesn’t overcook or burn. When the caramel fully melts and starts to brown and bubble up, turn off the heat. Carefully and slowly, add and stir in 1 cup of “hot” water. This part can be quite explosive so be careful not to burn yourself.
步驟1
將一杯的白砂糖放入鍋中來製作焦糖，將砂糖加熱至融化，但需隨時注意火跟鍋子，你可以隨時降低火侯，以防火太大而燒焦。當焦糖開始全部融化變成棕色且冒泡泡就可以將火關掉，接著小心的倒入1杯熱水，這個步驟可能會有小噴灑。

Step 2
Once caramel sauce has been prepared, add and whisk in 1/2 cup sugar to sweeten. Add in 3 tablespoons of fish sauce to give it extra flavor and 3 tablespoons of minced garlic. Cut in 1-2 spicy red chilies. Squeeze in 2 limes and taste to see if the sauce is ok. I added 2 more tablespoons of fish sauce as it wasn’t salty and flavorful enough. Add in 1 tablespoon of garlic powder and 1 tablespoon of fresh ground black pepper.
步驟2
準備好焦糖之後，加入1/2杯砂糖，增加甜的風味。加入3湯匙魚露提味，加入3湯匙的大蒜碎，加入1-2條辣椒，加入2顆檸檬汁。可以試試看口味後，依個人喜好調整風味。我另外多加入2湯匙的魚露增加鹹味。接著，加入1湯匙大蒜粉及胡椒粉。

Step 3
Marinate the beef short ribs with the caramel fish sauce and store in the fridge for at least half an hour to an hour. Best result is to marinade a few hours or overnight sealed in a ziplock bag.
步驟3
使用調好的焦糖魚露醬來醃製牛排，可以放入冰箱大約醃半小時至一小時。最好可以放在夾鏈袋中放入冰箱中醃製一晚。

Step 4
Use the remaining caramel fish sauce marinade to make the sauce to pour onto the finished steak. Add in 1/2 cup of chopped cilantro, 1/2 cup of chopped Thai basil, 2 sliced large red chilies, 1-3 sliced small spicy chilies and 1 tablespoon of minced garlic. Stir all ingredients to make the finishing sauce.
步驟4
使用醃牛排剩餘的醬汁來製作最後的牛排醬汁。另外放入1/2杯的切碎香菜、1/2杯切碎九層塔、2條大辣椒、1-3條小辣椒(依個人喜歡辣度加入)、1湯匙大蒜碎。攪拌均勻即可。

Step 5
Remove the steaks from the fridge and try to remove small pieces of garlic or red chilies so that they don’t burn when you are pan frying the steaks. Pat the steaks dry so they are also not too wet from the sauce. Also remember to let the steaks rest outside, so they get to near room temperature. A cold steak on a hot pan will only result in an undercooked and raw steak inside.
步驟5
半小時後將醃製的牛排從冰箱裡取出，把附著在牛排表面的一些大蒜碎跟辣椒撥掉，以防在鍋中煎的時候會烤焦。將牛排的水分完全處理乾燥(擦乾亦可)，另外記得將牛排在退冰到室溫後再來煎，未退冰完全會導致再熱鍋上的牛排只有外部煎熟內部是生的。

Step 6
Add in 1-2 tablespoons oil into a frying pan and heat up until it is very hot. You should see a little white smoke rising from the pan.
步驟6
在鍋中加入1-2湯匙油，然後先熱鍋。直到過子的油開始冒煙。

Step 7
Add in the steak to sear on one side until brown, then flip the steak. Add in some of the marinating sauce onto the steak to add to the flavor and help create a brown crust (caramelization) to the steak.
步驟7
把牛排放入鍋中，將一面先煎至棕黃色後，再將牛排翻面。接著再淋上一些剛剛醃牛排的醬汁，來增加牛排風味及焦脆的外皮。

Step 8
When both sides have a nice brown crust to the steak, check to see if the steak is ready by pressing the meat to check its tenderness. You can use your hand, as a guidance to tell how well the steak is cooked.
步驟8
當牛排兩面都煎至完美的棕黃色後，輕壓牛排軟硬度來確認牛排熟度。可用大拇指手掌的位置軟硬來對應牛排的生熟度。

Step 9
When ready, remove the steak from pan and place onto a plate to rest the steak. A steak needs to rest for 10 minutes so that the juices get reabsorbed back into the meat. If immediately cut into the steak, the juices will steam and evaporate away leaving the steak tougher.
步驟9
牛排好了後，起鍋放在盤中需靜置約10分鐘讓肉汁吸收回肉質中。若直接將牛排切開，肉汁會直接蒸發掉，使牛排的肉質變硬。

Step 10
I like to plate this dish by using a nice wood cutting board. Slice the steak diagonally on the board and be sure to cut across the meat grain, so it is more tender when eating it. Spoon on the caramel fish sauce with cilantro, basil and chilies. Sprinkle on deep fried minced garlic and and deep fried shallots, and you are ready to eat!
步驟10
我喜歡直接用木頭盤子當作擺盤，將牛排直接斜切在木板上，並沿著肉的紋理切，吃起來的肉質會更軟嫩。接著再淋上前面製作好的九層塔香菜牛排醬汁，最後撒上一些炸大蒜碎及紅蔥頭就完成摟！
Edited by Apple