Thai Sun Dried Crispy Beef

My fiance, Ry, used to always order this dish at the Bangkok Garden (Thai restaurant), in Bethesda, MD. But now... he'd rather have mine!

• Ready In: 31 hrs
• Serves: 7-8

Ingredients

• 2  lbs  flank steaks (I successfully have substituted other inexpensive cuts as well)
• 3  tablespoons  finely chopped lemongrass
• 2  bird's eye chili peppers (my mom keeps a fresh supply of these in the freezer)
• 5  tablespoons  chopped garlic (I am guilty of using a heavy hand with the garlic, but it suits my family just fine!)
• 5  tablespoons  chopped chinese  parsley roots
• 1⁄4 cup  chopped shallot
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  chopped fresh ginger
• 1⁄4 cup fish sauce
• 2  tablespoons sugar (I had only cooking splenda in the house once, and it went undetected by Ry)
• 6  finely chopped kaffir lime leaves
• 5  cups  oil, for deep-frying (try to choose an oil with a high smoke point such as canola, sunflower etc...)
•  sriracha sauce

Directions

1. Cut steak lengthwise, with grain, in strips 1-2 inches wide and 4-5 inches long.
2. Combine lemongrass, chili peppers, garlic, parsley roots, shallots and ginger into a mortar or food processor and grind together, until well mixed.
3. Add mixture from last step to a gallon sized zip top freezer bag and add fish sauce, sugar and kaffir lime leaves -- stir to mix in new ingredients.
4. Add beef strips and mix well to coat (don't be afraid to get your hands dirty, reach into that bag, it'll be worth it).
5. Refrigerate bagged beef mixture overnight.
6. Lay beef strips out on a large cookie sheet and heat in the oven on the lowest setting for 5-7 hours, until dried (historically in Thailand, this step was the sun-drying step).
7. The dried beef can either be deep fried immediately for a couple minutes to give it a crispy outside (careful not to crowd the oil), or you could refrigerate a portion for frying later that week.
8. Serve hot with Sriracha sauce and sticky rice, or steamed jasmine rice.