Yum Neua is the sort of salad that wakes up every part of your palate. Tender slices of quickly cooked beef meet cool cucumber, juicy tomatoes, crisp peppers, fresh herbs and crushed peanuts, all pulled together by a dressing that is salty, sour, sweet and properly lively with chilli.

The dressing is the real star. I begin by pounding garlic in a stone pestle and mortar until it becomes smooth and creamy, then work in the chilli and sugar before adding fish sauce and fresh lime. A blender or manual chopper will still make a very good dressing, but the mortar creates a particularly lovely texture.

You do not need an expensive steak. A cheaper frying steak only needs a couple of minutes on each side, followed by a short rest and thin slicing across the grain. I have also made the salad with prawns while travelling in Costa Rica, which proved just how much of the dish’s character comes from that punchy dressing and fresh salad base.

Method

1. Start the dressing. Put the garlic into a stone pestle and mortar and pound until it breaks down into a smooth, creamy paste. Add the chilli and sugar, then continue pounding until the chilli is well bruised and the sugar begins to dissolve.
2. Balance the flavours. Work in the lime juice and fish sauce. Taste carefully: it should be assertively sour and salty, lightly sweet and as hot as you enjoy. Add a little more lime or sugar to balance it, or a tablespoon of water if it feels too intense. A small blender or manual chopper can be used instead.
3. Prepare the cucumber. Halve the cucumber lengthways and scoop out the soft, watery centre with a teaspoon. Slice the firmer flesh on an angle. This keeps the finished salad crisp and prevents the dressing becoming diluted.
4. Build the salad. Put the cucumber, tomatoes, red onion, pepper, coriander and mint into a large bowl, but do not dress them yet.
5. Cook the steak. Pat the frying steak dry and season with black pepper. Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan until properly hot. Cook the steak for roughly 2 minutes on each side for a pink centre, adjusting for its thickness and your preferred doneness.
6. Rest and slice. Transfer the steak to a board and rest for 5 minutes. Slice it thinly across the grain so even an inexpensive frying steak eats tenderly. Pour any resting juices into the dressing.
7. Toss and serve. Pour most of the dressing over the vegetables and toss gently. Divide between two plates, arrange the warm sliced beef over the top and spoon over the remaining dressing. Finish with the crushed peanuts immediately before serving so they keep their crunch. Add jasmine rice if you want a larger meal.

Allergy note: This recipe contains fish and peanuts; the prawn variation also contains crustaceans. Fish sauce brands vary and may contain additional allergens, so always check the label.