Classic Beef Stew

My first cooking class of 2021 was called Classic Comfort Food.  Even though the phrase "comfort food" is a bit of a cliché, I am unapologetic about the title.  I think it is useful in describing what we all seem to need at the moment.  It is meant to describe food that transports us to tables and moments past when simple, familiar food—prepared by someone who loved us—had the ability to momentarily hold our worries at bay.  I could use some of that right now.  Furthermore, for me, these foods also remind me of people that I love—and meals shared with them.  Since I’m eating all of my meals alone these days, I could use some of that too. 

The beef stew my mother made when I was growing up was delicious.  I was a picky eater…but I loved her stew.  The stew I make today is actually very similar to the one she made.  I have returned it to its French roots (with a bit more attention to technique…and added red wine, bacon and mushrooms), and I have omitted her final addition of peas.  But otherwise, the tender meat, carrots, and potatoes, suspended in a rustic “broth” –lightly thickened by virtue of the flour-dredged beef, the onions that have disintegrated from long cooking, and the starch released from the potatoes—is exactly like hers.  There are no tomatoes…or peppers…or other odd ingredients that I would have resented as a child—just a simple, straight forward, bowl of beefy goodness.  I always think of long ago family meals when I sit down to a bowl of that stew.

If you have never made beef stew, this one is a good place to start.  It gives back loads of flavor for minimal effort...and is a perfect activity for a homebound Saturday or Sunday. As with all braises, it will take the better part of the afternoon to make.   But since most of that time is in the oven with nothing required of you (other than the occasional peek under the lid), it counts as easy in my book.  If you aren’t familiar with the hows, whys and processes of a braise, check out my basics post from a few years ago before getting started.

One important thing to note: when you’re shopping, make sure you purchase beef chuck or boneless short rib meat—not the “stew meat” sold at most butcher counters.  Generic stew meat is usually a mystery conglomeration of beef trim that serves as a way for the butcher to make money from what would otherwise go in the trash.  To prepare a good stew, you need specific tough, sinewy cuts from around the joints and well-used muscles of the animal.  “Stew meat” may or may not contain these cuts. 

Furthermore, the pieces of meat you use for your stew need to be on the large side—certainly larger than the nubbins in the stew meat bin.  Small pieces of meat will disintegrate into the broth.  The large pieces will look more attractive and be easier to serve.  It is an easy thing to just cut up a chuck roast or some boneless beef short ribs yourself when you get home.  Cut the meat into 1 1/2- to 2-inch cubes.  These pieces will seem large…but they will shrink as they cook.  And you needn’t worry that the large pieces will be difficult to eat from a bowl:  when cooked properly, the meat is tender enough to be “cut” into bite-sized pieces with a spoon.   Another bonus in cutting the meat yourself:  you can be as fastidious as you like in removing the fat.  I generally only remove obvious, large knobs since most of the fat will dissolve and add flavor and moisture to the stew.  Any excess can be blotted off or skimmed away from the finished stew. 

I had hoped that this year would be less traumatic than last.  So far the year isn’t very promising.  One of the things I have control over is how I feed myself.  So, I continue to cook….every day.  I highly recommend it.  Occasionally preparing and eating a bowl of stew…or some other delicious and simple food that reminds me of people I wish I could be with and better days…gives me a measure of hope that things will one day be better again. 

Classic French-style Beef Stew

2 1/2 to 3 lbs. boneless beef short ribs or chuck, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
Salt & freshly ground pepper
4 oz. thick-sliced bacon, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch strips
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 onions, (about 1 lb.) cut in a 1/2-inch dice
2 large cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper, to taste
3/4 c. dry red wine
3 to 4 c. beef or chicken stock—if using canned, use low-salt
2 or 3 sprigs thyme
1 lb. carrots, peeled and cut crosswise on a 1/2-inch short diagonal
1 lb. Yukon potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
8 oz. mushrooms, cleaned and halved (quartered, if large)
1/4 c. minced flat-leaf parsley

The day before you plan to prepare the stew, season the meat generously with salt.  I use 3/4 t. of kosher salt per pound of meat (so about 2 t.).  Wrap loosely and refrigerate overnight.

To prepare the stew: Render the bacon in a large stew pot or Dutch oven set over medium heat.  When the bacon is crisp, remove it along with the fat, reserving each separately. 

While the bacon cooks, dredge the beef in the flour, shaking off the excess.  

Return enough of the bacon fat to the pan to coat the bottom of the pan and increase the heat to medium-high.  Brown the beef on all sides—it may be necessary to do this in batches so the pan isn’t over-crowded.  

Add more bacon fat as necessary.  Remove all the meat to a platter 

and add more bacon fat or olive oil to the pan.  Add the onions.  Regulate the heat as necessary to sweat the onions just until softened and beginning to take on a golden color (about 5 to 10 minutes).  

Add the garlic and continue to cook for a minute or so.  Add the wine and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to release the caramelized meat and vegetable juices.  Reduce the wine by at least half. 

Return the meat to the pan and add enough broth to cover the meat.  

Add the thyme.  Bring to a boil.  Cover and transfer to a preheated 300° oven.  Bake for 2 hours, checking occasionally to make sure the stew is cooking at a bare simmer.  It should not boil hard…but it should maintain an active simmer.  Reduce the oven temperature if necessary.

After 2 hours, remove the stew from the oven.  If there is a lot of grease pooling on the surface, spoon it off, or blot with a paper towel.  

Add the potatoes and carrots, season with salt and pepper, cover and return to the oven until the meat and vegetables are fork tender (about 45 minutes to an hour more).

While the stew finishes cooking, sauté the mushrooms in some of the bacon fat (or olive oil or butter) until nicely browned; Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

When the vegetables are tender, carefully stir in the mushrooms and bacon.  Taste and correct the seasoning.  Remove the thyme sprigs and serve, sprinkled with minced parsley.  Serves 6
 

(Recipe adapted from The Kansas City Star November 11, 1992)

Variation: 

• Classically, this French-style stew would be finished with glazed pearl onions in addition to the mushrooms and bacon.  To prepare the pearl onions, place 8 oz. of peeled pearl onions in a saucepan and cover them with water.  Add 1/2 T. of butter, a teaspoon of sugar and a pinch of salt and bring to a simmer.  Cover and cook until almost tender.  Uncover and increase the heat to high and boil until the liquid is reduced to a glaze; reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook until the glaze turns a golden brown, swirling the pan to coat the onions with the glaze.  Scatter the pearl onions over the stew with the mushrooms and bacon.  Or, for a more classic presentation, reheat the pearl onions, mushrooms and bacon separately and garnish each bowl of stew individually with them.
  
• For a more American-style beef stew, omit the red wine, mushrooms and bacon.  Brown the meat in vegetable oil.  Add a cup of frozen peas to the stew during the last five minutes of cooking.

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Vacation Inspiration...Mango, Avocado & Corn Salad…with or without Steak

During almost every summer in recent memory I have been able to spend a week with my best friend from college.   It is a lovely break for both of us.  We let go of most of our commitments for a week…and spend our time doing whatever we like.  Most of our time is spent talking.  And of course, we cook too.

Since I am constantly behind on my cooking reading, I always take a stack of current and recent magazines, as well as a cookbook or two.  We often prepare our meals from the inspiration I find in my reading materials.  This gives me a chance to try new things….and she gets a break from planning meals for her family (and her family is the happy recipient of our efforts).

This year was a little bit different in that I didn’t spend too much time in my reading materials.  I’m not sure why.  But we still cooked almost every day.  For the most part we just cooked things that were familiar to me…but new for my friend:  A pizza with garlic cream (topped with roasted zucchini & potatoes—and olives—instead of asparagus and mushrooms)…   The  BLAT salad with torn croutons from earlier this month…  And a Beef, Mango & Soba Noodle Salad that I hadn’t thought about in a few years (I had forgotten how delicious it is!).   

Because we don’t want to spend all our time cooking, lunch is leftovers of whatever we have been cooking up during the evenings.  This year (for reasons that are still a mystery to me) we kept eating everything we prepared for the evening meal and there were rarely leftovers.  This made it so we had to get a little more creative with our lunches—which was just fine with me.    

One day I opened the fridge and spotted a mango and some limes (left from our purchases for the Soba noodle salad), an avocado, a bowl full of roasted corn and a little arugula (from the BLAT salad) and a wedge of Ricotta Salata.   I thought this looked like the makings of a pretty delicious salad.  And it was delicious.  Tangy, sweet, and salty…refreshing and not too filling…  Basically an ideal summer lunch. 

When I got home from my vacation I was still thinking about it.  Because I was also thinking about how delicious the steak had been with the mango (in the soba noodle salad), I decided to make the salad again—only this time I served it with steak…and we had it for dinner.  I am happy to report that it was equally delicious with the steak…thus making an ideal summer dinner too.  However you choose to serve it, I think you will find it to be perfect summer food.

Mango, Avocado & Roasted Corn Salad

1/4 c. freshly squeezed lime juice

1 fat clove of garlic, smashed to a purée with a pinch of salt

1 t. ground cumin

6 T. Olive oil

2 ears of corn, in the husk

2 strip steaks, about 12 oz. each and 1 1/4- to 1 1/2-inch thick

Kosher salt

1 T. olive oil

1/2 t. ground cumin

1/8 t. ground chili powder (ancho, chipotle, or a favorite blend)

4 or 5 sprigs fresh oregano, leaves picked

2 small to medium ripe mangoes

2 ripe (but firm) avocados

2 or 3 scallions—white and a few inches of green, washed, trimmed and thinly sliced on a long diagonal (you should have about 1/3 to a scant 1/2 cup)

2 handfuls of arugula

2 oz. (more or less) ricotta salata, crumbled

 Place the lime juice and garlic in a small bowl; whisk to break up the garlic.  Let sit for five to ten minutes.  Add the cumin and a generous 1/4 t. of kosher salt.  Add the olive oil in a thin stream while whisking constantly.  Taste for salt, adding more if necessary.  Season with freshly ground pepper.  Set aside.

Place the corn, in the husk, in a preheated 400° oven.  Remove after 20 minutes.  When the corn is cool enough to handle, remove the husks and silks.  Slice the kernels away from the cobs.  Use the back of the knife, or a spoon, to scrape the cobs.  Add the scrapings to the kernels.  You should have about 2 cups of kernels.  Set aside.

If time permits, salt the steaks ahead of time (earlier in the day or the day before).  About an hour before you are ready to cook the steaks, remove them from the fridge. Combine the oil with the cumin and chili powder.  Rub the seasoned oil and the oregano leaves all over the steaks.  Let sit at room temperature for 30 to 60 minutes. 

You may cook the steaks on the grill or in a cast iron pan.

For Grilling:

Heat grill to high (you will only be able to hold your hand 2 to 4 inches above the grate for a count of 2 or 3 seconds). Place the steaks on the grill.  After 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, rotate the steaks a quarter turn (this will create attractive “crosshatch” grill marks). After another 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, turn the steaks over and cook for a total of 3 to 4 minutes, rotating the steak one quarter turn half-way through the cooking time.  Finally, using a tongs, sear the edges of the steaks—about a minute for each long edge. This steak should be more or less medium rare. For a slightly more well done steak, increase the grilling time slightly. For a substantially more well done steak, it may be necessary to reduce the temperature in addition to increasing the time over the flame. When the steaks are done to your liking, transfer them to a plate and allow them to rest for about 10 minutes.

In a Cast Iron pan:

Heat the pan over high heat until smoking hot.  Make sure your exhaust fan is on…and perhaps open a window.  If your smoke detector is near the kitchen, you might want to disable it (make sure you reconnect it when you are done).  Add the steaks to the pan.  You don’t need to add any oil to the pan—you have already put the oil on the steaks.  Turn the steaks occasionally, aiming for a nice char/sear on all the surfaces, including the narrower edges.  If the char is too dark, reduce the temperature slightly.  Total cooking time will be about the same as on the grill….about 8 minutes total for medium rare…another minute or two for medium, and etc..  (If you don’t have an exhaust fan that works well, I have found that if I start the sear on the stove and then transfer the pan to a 425° to 450° oven that I can contain the smoke a bit (don’t forget to turn the steaks occasionally so they will cook evenly).  When the steaks are done to your liking, transfer them to a plate and allow them to rest for about 10 minutes.
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While the steaks are resting, peel the mangoes and cut the flesh away from the pit in thick slabs on all sides.  Cut the slabs into rough, 1/2-inch pieces.  Place in a large bowl.  Halve and pit the avocados.  Cut the flesh of each of the halves before removing the skin.  Holding an avocado half in your non-working hand and your knife in your other hand, slice the flesh length-wise at half inch intervals, cutting all the way to, but not through, the skin.  Repeat this slicing action cross-wise.  Then, using a large spoon, scoop out the flesh in one motion while holding the half over the bowl of mangoes.  The avocado should fall into the bowl in a rough dice.  Repeat with all four halves.  Add the scallions and the corn.  Season to taste with salt & pepper and drizzle with enough vinaigrette to lightly coat everything.  Toss gently to combine.

Slice the steaks thinly and fan on one side of a large platter…or divide among four dinner plates.  Place the arugula in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper.  Drizzle with a small amount of the vinaigrette and toss to coat.  Scatter the arugula over the platter…or plates.  Mound the salad over the arugula and on part of the sliced steak.  Drizzle any remaining vinaigrette over all.  Scatter the ricotta salata over all and serve right away.

Serves 4 generously

Temperature Guidelines for determining “Doneness”:

Rare (cool red center)  —  120°
Medium Rare (warm red center)  —  125°
Medium (rosy center)  —  130°
Medium well (pink center)  —  135°
Well done (no pink)  —  140°

Remember to remove the meat from the grill/pan/oven when the temperature in the center is about 5° lower than the desired final temperature—the meat will continue to cook as it rests

Notes & Variations:

• Omit the steaks for a light lunch…or a vegetarian meal. 
• Replace the strip steaks with flank steak. 
• Substitute Feta for the Ricotta Salata
• If you want a super quick version of the salad, you can skip the vinaigrette and simply dress the avocado, corn and mango with a generous squeeze of lime and a drizzle of olive oil. Don’t forget the salt & pepper! 
• For tips (including pictures) of how to cut a mango, check out the post for the Soba noodle salad

Printable Version

It's delicious with cold, leftover steak too!

Tunisian Spiced Lamb Meatballs

We had David Tanis's Tunisian Meatballs for dinner the other night.  Tanis is one of my favorite chefs...and I love the cookbook in which this recipe is found...but for some reason I hadn't made them in a while.  Since I am teaching them in an upcoming class, I thought it would be a good idea to make them again.  It isn't as if I need a refresher course in cooking these meatballs, but having the recent tactile experience of making something always reminds me of things I want to say during a class.  As I made them, I was struck anew with what a fantastic recipe this is for meatballs.

I appreciate this recipe for many reasons:   The balance of spices is just right...  gently evocative of another place.  They are not too hot...nor are they too mild.   And the saffron and tomato cooking broth is subtle, fragrant and flavorful.  The dish is particularly nice with couscous (one of my favorite side dishes). But more than anything else, I love this recipe because it contains the bones of a great basic recipe for meatballs—it gets the balance of ground meat to egg to bread to salt just right.  Too much bread and a meatball will be mealy and soft rather than meaty.  Too little and the meatballs will be dry...and possibly hard.  Too much egg and they will be rubbery...  not enough and they will have a tendency to fall apart.  If you have tried a lot of recipes for meatballs, you know that getting the balance right is not a given.  Since happening upon this recipe a few years ago, I have used the ratios in this recipe to "repair" a couple of recipes that have good flavor, but inconsistent textural results. 

I have always made this particular recipe with lamb, but I am certain they would be delicious made with beef.  Just make sure that you are using a meat that is about twenty percent fat.  A cut with less fat will tend to produce dry, hard meatballs.  If this amount of fat seems decadent to you, consider this dish (or any meatball dish) an occasional splurge where the extra fat is totally worth the tender, juicy, flavorful result.

As you look at the recipe, don't be put off by the length of the ingredient list.  As Tanis points out, you can organize your work by making the sauce and/or the meat mixture ahead.  And even if you choose to make all the components and finish the dish in one session, once you have all of the spices measured out...and the herbs chopped...the meat mixture is very quickly and easily put together.   Furthermore, as with almost every recipe for meatballs in sauce, these freeze beautifully.  If you take the time to make a large batch, you can freeze it in portion-sized packets.  Then, on some future night when you are tired and busy, you will be able to enjoy the luxury of a slightly labor intensive dish...without having to expend any labor at all.

Tunisian Meatballs

The Sauce:

2 T. olive oil
1 1/2 c. finely diced onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 T. tomato paste
1 inch piece cinnamon stick
Large pinch saffron, crumbled
Salt and pepper
3 c. chicken broth, vegetable broth or water

The Meatballs:
1 1/2 c. cubed day-old firm white bread

1 c. milk
1 lb. ground lamb (or beef chuck)
1 large egg, beaten
1 t. kosher salt, divided
4 garlic cloves, smashed to a purée with some of the salt
1/4 t. black pepper

2 t. paprika

1 t. ground ginger

1 t. turmeric

1/2 t. ground cumin

1/4 t. cayenne

1/4 t. ground cloves

1/4 t. ground coriander

1/8 t. grated nutmeg

2 T. minced parsley

2 T. minced cilantro

2 T. finely chopped scallion, white and pale green portions

All-purpose flour, for dusting

Olive oil or vegetable oil

Chiffonade parsley and cilantro for garnish

Thinly sliced scallions (green portion only) for garnish

To make the sauce, heat the oil over medium-high heat in a wide, heavy bottomed saucepan. Add onion and cook without browning until softened, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, tomato paste, cinnamon stick and saffron, and stir well to incorporate. Season generously with salt and pepper, and allow to sizzle for 1 minute more. Add broth, bring to a simmer, and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat. The sauce may be made up to a day in advance and refrigerated.

To make the meatballs, put bread cubes and milk in a small bowl and let the bread soak until softened, about 5 minutes, then squeeze dry and transfer to a medium bowl.

Add the ground meat to the bread and mix gently with your hands, then add the egg, garlic, salt, pepper, paprika, ginger, turmeric, cumin, cayenne, cloves, coriander and nutmeg. Mix well with hands to distribute seasoning. Add the parsley, cilantro and scallion, and knead for a minute. The mix may be prepared up to a day in advance and refrigerated. 

With your hands, roll mixture into small balls about the size of a quarter. Dust lightly with flour.

Heat a quarter-inch of oil in a wide heavy skillet over medium-high heat. 

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Fry meatballs, turning once, until barely browned, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a wire rack set over a tray lined with a double layer of paper towels.

Add the meatballs to the sauce, bring to a simmer over medium heat cover and cook for about 20 minutes, until the sauce has thickened slightly and the meatballs are tender. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning, adding salt or cayenne as necessary. 

Garnish meatballs with remaining parsley, cilantro and scallion. Serve with couscous or rice. Serves 4 to 6.

(Recipe adapted from One Good Dish by David Tanis)

Notes:

• I have made this recipe and formed very small meatballs (about 10 to 11 grams each and about the size of a quarter as Tanis directs) and also in a slightly larger size (about 15 grams each) without any reduction in quality or finesse (although, I prefer the smaller ones). If made into the very small size you will have about 60 meatballs. You will have 40 to 45 in the larger size. 
• Both the sauce and the meatball mixture can be made a day ahead. Store covered in the refrigerator. 
• As mentioned in the text, the ratios of this recipe produce a particularly fine meatball.  You can use these ratios to improvise your own meatball recipe...or repair a recipe that has nice flavors, but in which the texture of the meatball leaves something to be desired.  For every pound of meat, use 1 egg, 1 t. kosher salt, and 1 1/2 cups cubed firm white bread (soaked in milk and squeezed dry).

Printable Version

Cold Soba Noodles with Beef, Red Bell Pepper, Mango & Fresh Herbs

Everyone needs to change up their routine occasionally.  I love the foods of France, Italy, Spain...basically the Mediterranean...and I never veer too far from these influences.  But today's salad is a departure.  I teach it in one of my summer salads classes and it is always a hit.  Because Asian food is not my area of expertise, I'm not going to elaborate too much on the details of the recipe.  Rather, I will just point out a few things that will help you navigate these flavors and ingredients if they are totally unfamiliar to you.

The salad features Soba noodles.  Made from wheat and buckwheat, their color is not particularly appetizing, but they are delicious and have the pleasant nutty character of buckwheat.  I have always enjoyed them cold, in salad-type preparations.  They should be cooked al dente and then rinsed under cold running water.  The rinse will stop the cooking process and rinse away excess starch.  You should keep rinsing until the water is clear and the noodles are cold.  Drain them well after they have been rinsed.  If they have a lot of water clinging to them, the salad will be watery and the flavor of your dressing will be weaker.  In his book Plenty, Yotam Ottolenghi tells you to spread the rinsed and drained noodles on a kitchen towel to wick away the excess water.  I have found this works pretty well.

The recipe I'm sharing today was actually inspired by that salad in Plenty.  The original is vegetarian.  I have added fish sauce to the dressing and topped the salad with beef instead of eggplant...so it is no longer vegetarian...but the vibrant and contrasting flavors of the tangy sauce, fresh herbs and sweet mango are all still there.  I have never made the original (I'm not sure why...I love eggplant), but if you are vegetarian, I'm sure it would be delicious.

If you are unfamiliar with fish sauce (nuoc mam or nam pla), I tend to think of it as the Southeast Asian equivalent of anchovies.  It is fishy and salty...and should be used in small amounts.  Just as with anchovies, typically you shouldn't taste the dish and think that you are eating fish...rather, the dish should just be more well-rounded and well-seasoned because of its presence.  You could omit it and just increase the salt in your recipe, but you will lose depth of flavor and the intense savory quality that it adds. 

If you have never cut up a mango, the only difficulty is navigating around the big seed.  The seed is wide and flat and tall...basically taking up a large portion of the center of the fruit.  The flesh of the mango right around the seed is quite fibrous and not usable in the salad.  To cut the mango, after peeling it, 

cut a thick slice down one of the wide faces of the flattened oval shape of the mango.  

Then make a similar cut on the opposite side.  You should have a 3/4- to 1-inch slab--which encases the seed--remaining.  Turn the mango and cut a swath down the two uncut sides to get the last bit of flesh for your salad.   (The flesh remaining around the seed is typically considered a cook's treat...something to gnaw on in the kitchen when no one is looking.)  

The chunks of flesh that have been cut away from the seed can be diced...or sliced...as you prefer.  

When you choose a mango for this salad, it should be ripe (the flesh will yield a bit to slight pressure) but firm.  If it is too ripe, it will tend to disintegrate into the salad as it sits.

When finished, this salad should be an exuberant medley of flavors and textures.  Juicy, sweet mango.... crisp sweet red pepper and red onion.....aromatic basil and cilantro (use as much of both as you like)....juicy, rich and savory beef....all bound together by the backdrop of the nutty and slightly chewy soba noodles and a tangy-salty-slightly hot and sweet dressing.  Really....a party in your mouth.  You should feel free to adjust the flavorings and additions until you achieve this effect.

My next post will most likely be planted firmly back in my regular territory.  If you visit my blog expecting to find ideas for seasonal produce...most often utilizing the flavors of the Mediterranean...I hope you don't mind the departure today.  I find this salad to be refreshing and satisfying—not only in its own right—but also because it is so different from the foods I normally prepare.  If you try it, I hope you will agree that it is just the thing for a hot summer night.

Soba Noodles with Beef & Mango

6 T. rice vinegar

4 T. lime juice

zest of 1 lime

2 T. Asian fish sauce

2 t. sesame oil

1 1/2 to 2 t. chili sauce (Sriracha)

2 T. sugar

1 fat clove garlic smashed to a purée with a pinch of salt

1 box soba noodles (8 to 9 oz.)

1 small red onion (4 to 5 oz.), sliced thinly (preferably with a mandoline) and rinsed and drained well

1 small red bell pepper (5 oz.), cored and thinly sliced

1 big mango, cut in scant 1/4-inch thick strips or in a 1/2-inch dice

3/4 to 1 oz. cilantro leaves (about 1 cup), cut in a rough chiffonade

3/4 to 1 oz. basil leaves (about 1 cup), cut in a rough chiffonade

Canola oil for sautéing

12 oz. Beef—strip, flank or skirt

Combine the first eight ingredients in a small bowl, whisking to blend.

Cook the noodles in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still al dente—about 5 minutes.  Drain in a colander and rinse under cold running water to stop the cooking process.  Shake the colander and spread the noodles on a kitchen towel to wick away any remaining excess moisture. Transfer to a large bowl and combine with the onion, bell pepper, mango and half of the herbs.  

Drizzle in about a third cup of the sauce and toss until everything is well coated (adding more sauce if necessary).  Salt to taste.  Set aside for up to half an hour.

To prepare the steak, heat a large sauté pan (cast iron is perfect) over medium-high to high heat (or preheat the grill to medium-high).  Season the steak(s) well with salt & pepper.  

A small flank steak (about 14 oz.) ready for the grill...

Add enough oil to barely coat the bottom of the pan (oil the steak if grilling).  When the oil in the pan is almost smoking, add the meat to the pan.  Sear the meat on both sides until splotched with color.  Reduce the heat and continue to cook the steaks, turning at regular intervals (don't forget the edges) until the steaks have reached your preferred doneness.  (If you are grilling, simply place the oiled and seasoned meat on the clean, preheated grill and cook, turning once, to your preferred doneness.)  Remove to a plate, drizzle with a couple of tablespoons of sauce and scatter with a couple of tablespoons or so of the herbs.  Turn to coat.

Let rest, for at least ten minutes...longer is better.  Slice thinly, returning the sliced meat to the mixture of sauce and drippings and herbs.  Set aside.

When ready to serve. Toss the noodles with as much of the remaining sauce as you like (I usually use all of it) and mound on a serving platter or individual plates.  

Pile the beef on top and scatter the remaining herbs over all.  Serves 4

Notes:

• Depending on appetites, you may of course increase the meat to as much as a pound...or more. 
• Temperature Guidelines for determining “Doneness” of beef (remembering that the temperature will increase by at least 5 degrees while the meat rests): 

Rare (cool red center) -- 120° 

Medium Rare (warm red center) --  125° 

Medium (rosy center) -- 130°

Medium well (pink center) -- 135°

Well done (no pink)  -- 140°

• If you don't like fish sauce, leave it out. Season the sauce with at least a half teaspoon of salt. 

(Recipe inspired by one in Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi)

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