Carpaccio is one of my favourite summer dishes. My variant uses dry-brined steak, and Lancashire cheese, rather than Parmesan – the combination of tangy, creamy cheese with the raw beef is very summery.

Ingredients:

  • Fillet steak; one per person.
  • Lancashire cheese (I like Mrs Kirkham’s)
  • Rocket leaves
  • Spinach leaves (salad quality)
  • A light vinaigrette
  • Coarse salt
  • A clove of garlic, peeled

I start by dry-brining the meat. This is a technique I picked up from Tim Ferris’s “4 hour chef” book. It turns a regular steak into something special. For the carpaccio, I rub a clove of garlic over the meat, the put the meat on a plate, sprinkle on a pinch of salt (slightly more than you’d use at the table), and pop it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

When it’s time to serve, layer the rocket and spinach leaves on a serving plate, slice the steak as thinly as you can – but don’t stress about the meat being slightly thicker than you’d see in a restaurant. Slice the cheese – it will crumble, and that’s okay. Layer the meat with a little cheese; I like roughly twice as much meat as cheese, but whatever works for you.

Add the vinaigrette – I prefer to use only a drop or two.

Serve.

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