MasterChef at Home: Tommy Pham’s Vietnamese Shaking Beef

We’re getting to the pointy end of this thing, MasterChef fans. Over the weekend, contestant Tommy Pham was sent packing, just missing out on finals week for the show.

His Bo La Lot and Bún bò Huế dishes sought to bring Vietnamese flavours to the judges in a fresh light but due to some slightly overworked and undercooked beef, his MasterChef journey was brought to a close.

“I was actually quite proud of myself when I plated up that second dish. It was something that I never would have imagined making, it looked like something from a fine dining restaurant which surprised me because I had never made anything look fine dining,” he told Channel 10.

“I just pack heaps of flavour into something, chuck it onto the plate and hope that my flavours hide the fact that it doesn’t look so amazing.”

If you’d like to taste some of that flavour for yourself, MasterChef alum Pham has shared one of his favourite quick and easy recipes with Lifehacker Australia. This is his guide to a quick and easy Vietnamese dinner.

How to make Tommy Pham’s Vietnamese shaking beef

Serves: 2
Cooking time: 15 minutes (minus marinating time)

What you’ll need:

• 400g beef tenderloin or sirloin cubed 3cm
• 1/2 onion chopped roughly

Marinate:

• 2 garlic cloves grated
• 2 tbsp cracked black pepper
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp golden syrup or honey
• 2 tsp olive oil

Directions:

1. Mix marinade ingredients together.
2. Marinate cubed beef in marinade for at least half an hour.
3. Fry beef on a frying pan with some oil on medium to high heat for a few minutes until medium-rare.
4. Serve with rice and a side salad of tomatoes, sliced onion and cucumbers.

If you’d like to continue cooking like a MasterChef contestant, check out Depinder Chhibber’s recipe for potato toasties here.