Thai Spiced Beef Carpaccio, Pickled Cucumber Salad

Beef
12 oz Australian striploin
1 ½ teaspoon black peppercorns, freshly ground
1 ½ teaspoon lemongrass, finely chopped
1 ½ teaspoon mint leaves, finely chopped
1 ½ teaspoon Thai basil, finely chopped

Cucumber Salad
8 oz Japanese cucumber, seeded and thinly sliced
2 teaspoons green hot chili, whole
1 tablespoon eschalots, sliced
4 ½ oz sugar
1 ½ white vinegar
12 oz water
2 teaspoons salt
3 oz crispy wonton, julienne

Method
Mix together black pepper, lemongrass, mint leaves and Thai basil. Spread on a tray and roll the beef in it. Wrap in plastic film to form an even roll and place in freezer until firm. When partially frozen, thinly slice the beef, starting from the middle, displaying 3 oz on each plate.

For the cucumber salad, mix the cucumber, chili and eschalots. In a saucepan, warm the water, vinegar, sugar and salt until diluted, pour over the cucumber and cool. Display 2 oz of the cucumber in the middle of the beef and garnish with the crispy wonton.