Steak, chicory and orange salad recipe

We love this steak, chicory, and orange salad for its surprising combination of flavours: juicy steak, bright citrus, and bitter leaves.

Too often people think salads are boring, not filling enough, or not satisfying. None of those apply here. The first trick to keeping salads exciting is to use big impact leaves. The mix of red and white chicory instead of lettuce brings a fantastic fresh crunch, in contrast to the meaty, tender steak. The flavour is slightly bitter, a complement for the orange dressing and a counterpoint to the sweetness of the sherry. A little peppery rocket tossed into the mix as well makes a great combination. At 180 calories per portion, this is one of our great low calorie lunch ideas.

Ingredients

• 6tsp olive oil
• 2 thickish sirloin steaks (about 150g)
• 2 oranges; 1 juiced, 1 segmented
• 2tsp sherry vinegar
• 1 rounded tsp Dijon mustard
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 red onion, cut into 8 wedges
• 2 heads white chicory, each sliced into 4 pieces lengthways
• 1 head of red chicory or radicchio
• A good handful of wild rocket

Method

1. Heat a frying pan over a medium heat. Rub 1 tsp of oil over each steak. Season them and fry for 1½-2 mins on either side. Wrap in foil and set aside.
2. Bring the orange juice to the boil in a pan until syrupy and reduced by half. Take off the heat, whisk in the vinegar, mustard, 1 tsp oil and seasoning.
3. Toss the red onion and white chicory in the rest of the oil. Griddle them for a few mins until browning and tender. Slice the steaks thinly.
4. Mix all the warm ingredients with the orange segments and the dressing. Serve on plates with the red chicory and rocket.

Top tips for making steak, chicory and orange salad

To add a little more flavour to your steak, crush a garlic clove and mix with the oil before you rub it on. You can make this salad portable by packing it into a lunchbox with a good seal, of course, but for a working lunch, we like to pack it into a lightly toasted pitta bread. Then you can eat it one-handed.

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