Peanut Ginger Beef Stir Fry

I genuinely like chopping things... now, anyway. Didn't used to. Didn't have any truck with hanging out with sharp, stabby knives. But I got used to it eventually, AND we got a decent set of knives for our wedding (it really makes a difference), and now, I'll chop up anything. I also have the freakish superpower of not crying over onions. I could rub those babies on like a pink-eye salve and not a tear would form.

Anyway. This recipe is fun if you have the extra chopping time. Or, you can do what I sometimes have to do and chop them up earlier in the day or week and then bust them out later for dinner. If you do that, make sure you loosely cover them in a damp paper towel so that they stay fresh. You can also substitute quite a bit on the veggies. Use whatever you like.

Peanut Ginger Beef Stir Fry
You'll need:
1 T. low-sodium soy sauce
1 T. creamy peanut butter
1/4 C. white wine (or water)
1/4 t. crushed red pepper flakes (optional; for those who don't like spice, omit)
3 t. asian sesame oil
3/4 lb. lean steak, sliced into thin strips
1 t. ginger
2 carrots, chopped into sticks
1 bunch scallions, cut in 1" pieces
1 red bell pepper, cut in strips
(You can easily substitute other veggies, like broccoli, water chestnuts, and those baby corn. Green beans are nice, too. I've used those in a pinch)
2 cloves minced garlic
2 T. roasted soy nuts or chopped peanuts, optional, for garnish

Get a large skillet scorching hot over high heat. While it's heating, combine: soy sauce, peanut butter, red pepper and wine/water. Set aside. When your skillet is ready, add in 2 of the 3 t. oil and let it get a little shimmery. Turn your oven fan on, unless you like the sound of your smoke alarm* and add the beef. Stir fry it quick, getting all the sides brown, so flipping constantly. When JUST browned, add the ginger and cook for about 1 more minute. Remove beef to a small dish and keep it warm.

Add into your pan (you can turn the heat down a little now) the remaining oil and then the carrots. Cook those for a minute before adding: the other veggies, the garlic. Stir fry until cooked through, then add 1 -- 2 T. of water to the skillet. Cover the veggies for two or three minutes, simmering. Then remove cover and add in your beef and peanut butter sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly to coat beef and veggies.

Serve over hot brown rice with nuts on top. Crunchy and creamy and delicious. My husband inevitably ends up licking his plate when he thinks I'm not looking. It's also only 275 calories per serving (not counting rice), or 6 WW points! Makes 4 servings.

Stir-Fry Songs:
"Babylon Sisters" by Steely Dan
"Aja" by Steely Dan
(Hey, Steely Dan just goes good with Stir-fry!!)


* Boy oh boy do I have a long, complex relationship with the smoke detector. When we lived in a little duplex, that thing went off if you left your toast in the toaster a minute too long -- and, Dumplings, this was back when I was setting EVERYTHING ablaze. If it wasn't on fire, it wasn't dinner. Anyway, the detector possessed the ear-drum shattering qualities of a newborn with colic. I hated that thing. Luckily, because our duplex was fairly ghetto, the smoke alarm was not fully attached to the wall. It was hanging by one lazy plastic nail that easily came off. This was another problem -- ocassionally, UNprovoked by my cooking, the thing would just maliciously fall off the wall and start howling. I became gifted at the snatch and grab, where I'd bolt across the kitchen at the first siren call, leap into the air (it was considerately placed three feet above my head), snatch the thing with all my might, and then beat on it until it shut up.

Sesame Shrimp (sans deep-frying)

I have yet to discover how "Sesame"-anything on a Chinese restaurant's menu has become synonymous with "deep fried with a sprinkle of sesame seeds"... Maybe something gets lost in translation? I don't know, though. Those geisha are pretty svelte. (I know, I know... That's Japan... an entirely different country.)

Tonight I'm making a far more sensible sesame dish. And I'm not like those recipe books that will lie to you and say, "Oh, this is JUST like take-out." That's a lie. It's always a lie. Take-out is take-out precisely because it's like nothing else -- it's supposed to be a treat, though, not a way of life. Hence the delicate distinction between the Dainty Debutante and the former, Deb-normous one.

So I am pretty sure I lifted the bulk of this recipe from a cookbook, but I did so before I had an inkling about what hoisin sauce was (it's a sweet, sticky sauce a little like honey, usually sold with the other asian condiments in the "ethnic" aisle of the grocery store), or where to find water chestnuts, so I made some big changes in the begining, then went back and replaced some things, and by that point I'd adjusted even other things... so. Sorry, forgotten cookbook, wherever you are. No credit for you!

2 T. hoisin sauce (because of my general idiocy and initial fear of asking for help in a grocery store, I originally used honey and that's a fine substitute. Just know that you will be using 3 T. total. And, hoisin will just make it taste more... Asian.)
2 T. soy sauce (use reduced sodium -- it has fewer calories!)
2 T. Sherry (who in the world actually stocks sherry?! I ask you... I use dry white wine, so there.)
1 T. honey
2 t. cornstarch
1 T. sesame oil (also stranded in the "ethnic" section -- it's darker than most cooking oils, and as soon as it hits the pan, you'll smell the difference. It's what makes a Chinese restaurant smell like a Chinese restaurant.)
1 1/2 lb. Large, ready-to-cook shrimp (i.e. deveined, etc. OR you can cheat and buy a bag of them frozen and literally ready-to-cook -- just thaw them under some cold water for about 10 min. before proceeding)
1 T. ginger
1 t. red pepper flakes (for heat -- if spice makes you ooky, just omit)
1 garlic clove
2 large, chopped scallions (both green and white parts)
1/2 lb. trimmed green beans (this is admittedly the most ridiculous thing I enjoy. There is something wildly appealing to me about snapping beans. I could do it for hours.)
8 oz. can of baby corn, drained.
2 tsp sesame seeds

Why must you be so easy, Sesame shrimp?!

Combine hoisin, soy sauce, "sherry", honey and cornstarch and whisk together for good, thick consistency.

Heat 2 t. of the oil over med. high heat. Let the scent permeate the house -- this is how my husband knows he's getting Chinese for dinner!
Add the shrimp and stir-fry them until just pink, no more than 5 min. Move them to a plate and keep warm.
Add remaining oil to skillet, then ginger, garlic and scallions. Stir-fry for about a minute and then add beans and corn. Stirfry them until beans are bright green (about 3 min.) -- finally stir in that hoisin mix and the shrimp. Bring to a boil and cook, stirring, until thick, another min. or two. Remove from heat before stirring in seeds and serving.

Serves 4, makes about 5 cups total. About 280 calories per serving, and no more than 4 grams of fat. Ridiculous. Nothing like take-out, but delicious all the same!!