Here’s a recipe for a Cambodian beef dish – Lok Lak. Vietnamese cuisine also features a similar dish – Bò lúc lắc or Shaking Beef. It’s a great way to enjoy the powers of a good marinade.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup oyster sauce
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 Tbsp mirin
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1 ½ tsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp ginger – finely minced or ground with a microplane
- 2 Tbsp arrowroot starch
- 3 tsp ground black pepper, divided
- ¼ cup water
- 1 tsp Better Than Bouillon
- 2 lbs steak – New York, ribeye or sirloin – cut into ¾ inch cubes or on the bias into strips
- 2 green onions, sliced – white and green parts separated
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- ½ head romaine lettuce, or 1 head butter lettuce, leaves separated
- 2 large red tomatoes, sliced – slightly unripe
- Cooked jasmine rice, for serving
- Optional: 1 cup sliced shiitake mushrooms
Directions
- In a small bowl, combine oyster sauce, garlic, mirin, tomato paste, fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger and 2 tsp pepper.
- In a medium bowl, stir together Better Than Bouillon and water. Once incorporated, add arrowroot starch and stir until smooth. Stir in beef to coat. Add ¼ cup of the sauce from the small bowl and again stir to coat. Cover and refrigerate beef 8 hours. Cover and refrigerate sauce until ready to cook beef.
- Heat oil in a wok or large sauté pan over high heat. Add beef and shake to get a brown sear on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add remaining prepared sauce, shiitakes (if using) and white parts of green onions, shaking pan often, for about 3-4 more minutes.
- In a small bowl, stir together lime juice, salt and 1 tsp pepper.
- Place lettuce leaves and tomato slices on a platter with beef on top. Add cooked jasmine rice on the side. Top rice with green onions and serve with seasoned lime juice.