Masala Steak Gatsby

Ingredients

• 1 long soft Portuguese roll or 4 soft baguettes
• 600g rump steak, sliced into thin strips
• 3 tbsp sunflower oil
• 2 onions, sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 3cm ginger, grated
• 2 tbsp roasted masala (Cape Malay curry masala)
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp crushed dried chilli
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tomatoes, grated
• 1 tsp salt
• 150ml water
• 800g floury potatoes
• 1 litre sunflower oil for the chips
• 3 tbsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp flaky salt for the chips
• 4 eggs
• Iceberg lettuce, shredded
• 4 tbsp peri peri or chilli sauce
• 3 tbsp mayonnaise

Before you cook

• Slice the rump steak across the grain into strips about 1cm wide.
• Slice the onions and crush the garlic with the ginger.
• Grate the tomatoes on the coarse side of a box grater and discard the skins.
• Peel the potatoes and cut them into thick chips about 1.5cm square.
• Rinse the chips under cold water until it runs clear, then dry them thoroughly on a tea towel.

Steps

1. Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a heavy pot over medium heat and cook the onions for 10 minutes until soft and golden.
2. Stir in the garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute.
3. Add the roasted masala, turmeric, crushed chilli and salt and stir for 2 minutes until the spices smell toasted.
4. Add the steak strips and bay leaves and turn everything until the meat is coated.
5. Stir in the grated tomato and the water.
6. Cover the pot, drop the heat to low, and cook for 45 minutes, stirring every so often, until the steak is tender and the sauce is thick and clinging.
7. Heat the frying oil to 150C and blanch the chips for 6 minutes without letting them colour.
8. Lift the chips out and rest them on a rack for 5 minutes.
9. Raise the oil to 180C and fry the chips again for 4 minutes until golden but still soft in the middle, which is exactly what a slap chip should be.
10. Drain the chips, douse them with the white vinegar and scatter over the flaky salt.
11. Fry the eggs in a little oil until the whites are just set.
12. Split the long roll lengthways without cutting all the way through.
13. Spread mayonnaise on the bottom half and lay down a bed of shredded lettuce.
14. Pile in the masala steak with plenty of its sauce.
15. Cover the steak with a thick layer of hot slap chips.
16. Lay the fried eggs on top and zigzag over the peri peri sauce.
17. Close the roll, press it down firmly, and cut it into four wedges to share.