With Lunar New Year just around the corner, palate memories of Asian-themed dishes tempt me and fuel my desire to cook.
Of course, the choices seem endless, but this year in an effort to make dishes that are quick to prepare as well as delicious, I’m turning to a simple beef stir-fry. OK, I’ll probably also make some dumplings that friends tell me promote prosperity in the new year, but the main event will be strips of beef stir-fried with carrots and mushrooms, served atop rice.
So which cut of beef is best for a stir-fry? Flank steak (which is cut from the abdomen of the steer) is prized for its rich, beefy flavor, and it is tasty in a stir-fry. Top sirloin is a little bit more tender than flank but is often more expensive. My local Albertson’s market stocks strips of choice-grade beef round tip; convenient, indeed, it’s ready for stir-frying. They recently had it on sale at $8.99 a pound.
The Year of the Horse began on Feb. 17.
Beef, Mushroom and Carrot Stir-Fry
Yield: 4 servings
INGREDIENTS
3/4 pound to 1 pound flank steak, trimmed
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons water, divided use
3 tablespoons oyster sauce, divided use
2 tablespoons cornstarch, divided use
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided use
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
10 ounces sliced fresh mushrooms
3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch matchsticks
5 green onions, white part thinly sliced, green part cut into 1-inch pieces, divided use
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Cook’s notes: To add palate pizzazz, I like to add a teaspoon of Frank’s Redhot to the soy sauce mixture in step 1. It adds a little hot spiciness as well as welcome acidity.
DIRECTIONS
1. Cut steak in thirds with the grain, then slice each piece thinly against the grain. Whisk 1 tablespoon water, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon cornstarch and baking soda in medium bowl. Add beef and toss to combine. Allow it to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes. Whisk soy sauce, 1/2 cup water, remaining 2 tablespoons oyster sauce and remaining 1 tablespoon cornstarch together in second bowl; set aside.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a large, deep skillet on high heat until just starting to smoke. Add half of the beef, breaking up any clumps with tongs. Cook, without stirring, until browned on the bottom, for about 2 minutes. Stir and continue to cook until spotty brown and no longer pink, about 30 seconds longer. Repeat with 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and remaining beef.
3. Heat sesame oil in the now-empty skillet. Add mushrooms, carrots, and remaining 1 tablespoon of water. Cover and cook until vegetables are tender, for about 3 minutes. Stir in white green onions and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Whisk soy sauce mixture to recombine, add to skillet and cook until sauce has thickened. Off the heat stir in green portions of green onions and beef. Serve over cooked rice.
Source: Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen
Award-winning food writer Cathy Thomas has written three cookbooks, including “50 Best Plants on the Planet.” Follow her at CathyThomasCooks.com.
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