coarsely chopped (as if making a steak tartar - you can ask your butcher to coarsely mince it)
1 small red pepper
finely diced
4 free-range eggs
2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1½ tbsp palm sugar
a good handful of Thai basil and a smaller handful of holy basil (optional)
freshly cooked rice
for serving
Directions
For the sauce
put the coriander roots
garlic and chillies into a pestle and mortar and crush lightly. Add the remaining ingredients for the sauce to the mortar and give it a good grind to infuse the flavours. Put into a serving bowl or dipping bowls.
For the beef
in the same pestle and mortar (don't worry about washing it up)
put the chillies
garlic cloves and sea salt. Grind until you have a paste.
Heat a wok with three tablespoons of vegetable oil
add the chopped shallots and fry for 3-4 minutes. Turn down the heat and then add the pounded chilli and garlic paste until slightly brown (about one minute)
stirring continuously on a low heat so that the garlic doesn’t burn. Turn the heat up and add the beef and red peppers
and cook until the beef is nearly cooked - this will only take 4-5 minutes.
In the meantime while the beef is cooking
heat a medium frying pan with two tablespoons of vegetable oil. Fry four eggs until crisp on the outside
but the yolks are still runny
Add the fish sauce
oyster sauce
soy sauce and palm sugar and a good handful of basil leaves and fold through the cooked beef. Divide into onto suitable serving bowls and serve with the rice and sauce on the side.
