Beef and Snow Peas

Today was my bi-weekly organic produce delivery. Inside the cooler was a small bag of snow peas, which inspired a dinner. Stir fry, for some reason, intimidates me. I guess the sauce always ends up a bit bitter and I don’t enjoy it. While my steak defrosted, I found a few tips online that I will now share with you.

Beef and Snow Peas

Ingredients:

1 8oz NY Strip Steak
1/4 lb snow peas
3 green onions
2 dried spicey peppers
3 gloves garlic
1 tbsp dried minced onion
2 tbsp sugar, divided
Salt, pepper to taste
3 tbsp soy sauce, divided
2 tbsp rice vinegar
Dash tobasco sauce
4 tbsp peanut oil

White rice, cooked

Directions:
Slice the steak against the grain into thin pieces and place on a plate or shallow bowl. Mince the garlic and add to the steak along with the minced onion, 1 tbsp sugar, salt/pepper, 2 tbsp soy sauce, tobasco sauce. Place in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes but no more than 2 hours.

Cook the rice, wait until almost done. Heat the peanut oil in the wok to spitting, then add the snow peas and dried peppers for 2-3 minutes.

Remove from the heat (leave the peppers) and then add the steak. Add to the wok 1 more tbsp soy sauce, rice vinegar, 1 tbsp sugar. The sauce will become a bit cloudy and thicken slightly. Cook for a minute, then add the snow peas back and the green onion.

Remove the peppers and serve.

TIPS FOR A BITTER-LESS STIR FRY
*Use sugar to sweeten
*Orange juice as part of the marinade will tenderize the meat even more and provide the sweetness required
*Carrots and onions can also balance a bitter sauce

Food and Wine Magazine Edition: Pork Tonkatsu

My awesome brother got me a subscription to Food and Wine Magazine!  Isn’t he awesome!

Anyway, as a  commitment to myself, I will cook AT LEAST 1 recipe from each edition of the magazine, and present it each month to my faithful readers. This month’s issue provided easy recipes from different ethnic backgrounds including Mexican, Thai, and Japanese.  This blog post will be my monthly Food and Wine Magazine Edition!

I’ve ‘mastered’ a lot of Mexican, and a lot of Thai food requires fish oil (gag me!). Therefore, I chose Pork Tonkasu, a recipe from Japan. This is a breaded and fried pork dish served over rice with a from-scratch sauce that is absolutely delicious.

Thus, I present to you, Pork Tonkatsu!

Ingredients:

1. 1/4 cup ketchup
2. 1/4 cup apple butter or applesauce
3. 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
4. 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
5. 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
6. 1 teaspoon unseasoned rice vinegar
7. 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
8. 2 egg whites, beaten
9. 1 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
10. Two 8-ounce pork tenderloins, cut into 2-inch pieces and pounded 1/2 inch thick
11. Salt
12. 1/4 cup canola oil
13. Steamed rice

Directions:

In a saucepan, bring the ketchup, apple butter, Worcestershire, soy, mustard and vinegar to a simmer; transfer to 4 bowls. Cool.

Put the flour, egg whites and panko in 3 separate shallow bowls. Season the pork cutlets with salt, then dredge in the flour, tapping off the excess. Dip the cutlets in the egg white, followed by the panko, pressing the crumbs to help them adhere.

In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the cutlets and cook over moderate heat until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Brush the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil on the cutlets. Flip and cook until golden and cooked through, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer the tonkatsu to a work surface and cut into strips. Transfer to plates and serve with rice and the dipping sauce.

Disclaimer: This recipe is directly from Food and Wine Magazine. No copy write infringement is intended.