Sometimes you need a quick supper, for one or two people. That’s exactly the situation I was in a week or so ago. With the rest of my family away, I wanted to have a decent supper on a tray, but I did not want to fuss with it.
I turned to a family favorite, a ‘fake’ stir-fry, because it’s easy and flexible, and if you’re making it in for only one or two, it goes together quickly.
Now in an ordinary stir-fry, I have all the ingredients sliced just-so ahead of time; I probably marinate the protein for 10 to 20 minutes; I make a delicious sauce to accent the dish. Not so with this one, which is all ‘chop and sear and poof you’re done’. It was a perfect solo dinner.
- 4-5 oz sirloin tip steak, well trimmed
- 1 small onion, cut in meridians
- 1 stalk celery, cut on diagonal
- 1/2 sm red bell pepper, in strips (optional)
- 3 large mushrooms, sliced
- a small handful green beans, trimmed and cut in 1″ pieces
- 1 large or 2 small ripe tomatoes, cut in wedges
- peanut oil
- cooked rice
While the rice cooks: slice the beef thinly into strips, across the grain. Get out a bowl that a plate fits over, and set it near the stove. Heat a skillet over medium heat.
When the skillet is hot, add 1-2 tsp oil, and when the oil shimmers, brown the steak strips, then transfer them and their juices into the bowl. Cover the bowl. Then, one by one, cook the vegetables, dumping them into your bowl layer by layer, in this order:
- onions
- celery
- green/red pepper
- mushrooms
- green beans
- tomato wedges
Deglaze pan with a little soy sauce and a splash of mirin, add to the bowl. Stir well to combine it all, then serve with rice.
Brittany H Martin said:
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