Stir-fry Beef Four Ways

Looking for new recipes to try?  Here are some stir-fry beef recipes I’ve made  for my family over the years made with only two elements to flavor the dish.  Surprise!  Yes! Two!

STIR-FRY BEEF WITH VEGETABLES

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Ingredients:

• 1 lb. beef chuck or brisket or any type of beef of your choice, cut thinly across the grain
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• half of small onions, chopped
• 1/2 of large yellow bell pepper or 2 baby yellow bell peppers, sliced lengthwise
• 1/2 of large red bell pepper or 2 baby red bell peppers, sliced lengthwise
• 1/2 of large orange bell peppers or 2 baby orange bell peppers, sliced lengthwise
• 2 handfuls of snow peas
• 2 fl. cups broccoli florets, cut in small bite pieces
• dark soy sauce and ground black pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon flour or more
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

This recipe was prepared years ago, so you might want to use your own sense of taste to flavor this recipe using only a tablespoon of soy sauce at a time  until you achieve the flavor you want and ground black pepper.  Yes, these are the two elements used to flavor this dish.

Heat a skillet with a lid over medium heat and coat with oil when hot.  Add garlic and onions and saute until garlic turns brown and onions are translucent.  Add the meat.  Stir-fry until meat is no longer pink.  Turn the heat to medium-low.  Cover the skillet and let the meat sweat.   The sweat from the meat will be the sauce.  You can add a little bit of water if you want that much sauce.  Cook until tender.  Add the soy sauce and ground black pepper according to your taste.  Stir and cover again and let all the flavors blend.  The flavor depends on the type of soy sauce you use.  Of all the soy sauce I’ve tried, Silver Swan soy sauce (available at any Asian store)  is the best in my opinion.  It’s not too salty and has that unique soy flavor I love so much.  I tried using other brand, but it didn’t taste the same.  All of them were very salty unless you add sugar to lessen the saltiness or use a low-sodium soy sauce, which is not very useful when you want dark soy sauce without adding sugar to the recipe.

Anyway, add all the vegetables and stir-fry just until all vegetables are cooked halfway through.  You might need to cover the skillet for the veggies to cook evenly.  Make sure the meat is tender before adding the vegetables.  Then, sprinkle with flour and stir-fry until all flour is dissolved and well combined.  The sauce will thickens as it cooks in just a few seconds.  Use your judgement.  If the sauce is watery, add more flour until you achieve the consistency you prefer.  Turn off the heat immediately.  Serve warm over quinoa, couscous, pasta of your choice, steamed white, wild or brown rice.

You can try using salt and pepper if you don’t like soy sauce, but it wouldn’t taste the same of course.  Please be reminded that heat do varies depending on your stove.  Make the necessary adjustments.

STIR-FRY BEEF WITH BROCCOLI AND PEPPERS

I served this dish many times over the years and the most recent was on New Year’s Eve.  We had  a potluck gathering at our residence to welcome 2014.  I heard nothing but great compliments.  Everyone loved it.

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For the ingredients, just omit the garlic and add broccoli florets, cut in bite pieces; sliced red bell peppers; and sliced onions.   The sauce varies depending on how much meat you are cooking.  The more meat, the more sauce it creates, so you might need to add extra tablespoon of all-purpose flour at a time to thickens the sauce according to your preference.  Please be reminded that only add the rest of the ingredients when the meat is tender.

BEEF WITH ONIONS

This is the root of all these.  It started when we relocated to Chicago from Hawaii.  We dined at a Chinese restaurant near we lived.  We ordered Mongolian beef also known as Beef with onions. It was tasty, but it was made with so much onions.  It should have been called Onions with Beef instead of the other way around.  It inspired me to make my own at home and I have been making it ever since.

This was in demand in my catering years.  One of the most sought after recipes by my friends and consumers.  A friend of mine tried one at a Chinese restaurant here in Virginia and I was told that my version is better.   Again, use the same technique mentioned above for the meat until tender then add the sliced sweet onions, green onions cut about an inch and a half, soy sauce and ground black pepper.  Make sure you add the onions only when the meat is tender.  Don’t overcook the onions.  A good variation is to use pork instead of beef.  It’s very delicious as well.   A friend of mine tried using pork meat and she said it was gobbled up because it was really good.  You should try it too. You can also use chicken, if you wish.  To have a tender meat and  flavorful result, your cooking techniques have something to do with it.

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STIR-FRY BEEF WITH ASPARAGUS

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This is the fourth ways of cooking up stir-fry beef.  The preparation methods are the same.  Just add the asparagus when the meat is tender.  Cover and let the steam cook the asparagus.  Use the same technique mentioned above to cook the beef.  No sweat.

There you have it.    Note all the techniques used herein and use them in your cooking.  You can use any vegetables you prefer and make simple, delicious recipes for your family and friends, such as green beans, bitter melons, etc.  The possibilities are endless.  How easy is that?

Have a great day everyone!

Note:  If any of these recipes inspire you to use as a guide to create your own, please be considerate and credit annascuisine.wordpress.com. and provide a link back to the original recipe.  Thank you.

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©annascuisine.wordpress.com (2014)   Unauthorized use and/or duplication of material herein without expressed and written consent from this blog’s author, Annabelle Bedell, is strictly and completely prohibited.

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