Recipe: Sautéed Beet and Snap Pea Salad with Steak Strips and Cumin Dressing

Sautéed Beet and Snap Pea Salad with Steak Strips and Cumin Dressing

Serves 2

Step 1: Prepare Dressing

• 1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. roughly chopped garlic
• 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 1 lime)
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 very small pinch cayenne pepper, more or less, to taste
• 1 tsp. coconut (or white) sugar
• 1/4 tsp. unrefined sea salt, more or less to taste
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Measure cumin into a small frying pan over medium-low heat and spread into a fairly thin layer. Cook until cumin smells toasty, about 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally and watching closely to prevent burning.

While cumin toasts, combine remaining dressing ingredients in the cup of immersion blender. Add toasted cumin and process 10 to 15 seconds to combine well. Reserve for at least 10 to 15 minutes for flavors to meld.

Step 2: Sauté Vegetables and Marinate

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 cups young beets cut in ¼” matchsticks (from about 4 medium, 2” beets) *
• Sprinkling of sea salt and pepper

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 cups trimmed sugar snap peas, halved on the diagonal (from about 3/4 lb.)
• Sprinkling of sea salt and pepper

In a large, heavy bottomed sauté pan, sauté beets over medium high heat in first tablespoon olive oil, sprinkling with salt and pepper as beets cook. When lightly browned, turn heat to medium low and continue cooking until tender to taste, stirring occasionally to prevent burning (and adding 1-2 Tbsp. of water and covering if necessary to cook beets through.) When done, remove to a serving bowl to cool to room temperature.

Rinse pan, then sauté peas over medium high heat in second tablespoon olive oil until lightly browned, sprinkling with salt and pepper as beets cook. Remove to serving bowl with beets.

Toss vegetables with half the dressing and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes, while preparing steak strips.

Step 3: Flash Fry Steak

• 1/2 lb. grass fed flatiron steak, sliced diagonally, across the grain, to about 1/4 to 3/8” thick
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1/2 to 3/4 tsp. unrefined sea salt

Heat a very large, heavy-bottomed (12 to 14”) sauté pan over medium high heat. While pan heats, cut steak and sprinkle pieces with pepper on one or both sides, as desired. When pan is quite hot, sprinkle salt evenly across the bottom. Turn heat to almost high and lay steak strips across bottom in a single layer with space between each of the pieces. Cook just 1 to 2 minutes, then flip. Remove pan from heat and cook just one or two more minutes, until rare or medium rare (avoid cooking grass fed beef any longer.)

Once done, remove steak immediately to a cutting board and slice into strips roughly ½” x 2”.

Step 4: Assemble Salad and Serve

• Unrefined sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 to 2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice, to taste
• ¼ to ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro, to taste

Sprinkle steak strips, lime juice and cilantro over vegetables and toss lightly to combine. Taste and add salt, pepper, lime juice, cilantro and more dressing to taste. Serve with additional cilantro, lime wedges and dressing on the side.

*Buying Note: Young, freshly picked beets are best for sautéing. One indication of freshness: beets sold as they are at farmers’ markets—still attached to tops that are vibrant and deep green; easy to find in summer and fall, since beets are then in season.