Recipe: "Beef and Baby Corn Stir-fry"
We made this tonight. It turned out pretty well.
"Beef and Baby Corn Stir-fry"
Ingredients:
Sauce:
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon mirin
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Stir-fry:
1/2 cup dried mushrooms, broken into bits, soaked
2 slices thin-cut beef, cut into bite-sized strips
half a sweet onion, sliced into half-circles
1 can baby corn, drained
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 thumb of ginger, minced
2 tablespoons sunflower oil
Directions:
Measure 1/2 cup dried mushrooms. Break or cut them into small pieces. Put the bits to soak in a small bowl of water.
In a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 teaspoon mirin, 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, and 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Stir until the cornstarch dissolves. Set aside.
Separate 2 slices of thin-cut beef. Cut into bite-sized strips. Set aside.
Cut half a sweet onion into half-circles. These will separate into crescents as they cook.
Open 1 can of baby corn and drain it. Set aside.
Peel and mince 2 garlic cloves. Mince 1 thumb of ginger, which doesn't need peeling unless you just want to. Put in a small bowl (big enough to get your bamboo spatula inside) and set aside.
Heat the wok. Add 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil and the minced aromatics. Stir-fry briefly.
Add the onions and stir-fry for several minutes until they separate and just start to soften.
Drain the soaked mushrooms. Put them in the wok and stir-fry briefly.
Add the baby corn and stir-fry briefly.
Put in the beef bits and stir-fry until just browned.
Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables. It will pool in the bottom of the wok. Stir-fry until the sauce turns glossy and thickens to coat the food.
Serve the beef and vegetables over rice or another starch.
Notes:
This sauce blend has a robust flavor, and thickens up beautifully in just a minute or two. It should work well in many stir-fry recipes.
Various mushrooms come in dried form. I used shiitake mushrooms. I didn't think to break them up this time, but have noted that step for future reference.
Here we used very thin slices of beef, cut into bite-sized pieces. They cooked almost instantly.
Sweet onions come in several varieties. When cut into half-circles they break up into crescents.
Baby corn is a popular Chinese vegetable with a tender-crunchy texture. It's basically the same as regular corn, but harvested when the cobs are about thumb size.
Garlic and ginger are my go-to aromatics for stir-frying. Using the fresh roots is both healthy and delicious, much better than preserved versions.
Overall, this recipe turned out well, with rich meaty flavor and chewy texture. We found it very satisfying. I liked the overall balance, but my partner Doug thought there was more corn than anything else, so would prefer a different vegetable.
"Beef and Baby Corn Stir-fry"
Ingredients:
Sauce:
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon mirin
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Stir-fry:
1/2 cup dried mushrooms, broken into bits, soaked
2 slices thin-cut beef, cut into bite-sized strips
half a sweet onion, sliced into half-circles
1 can baby corn, drained
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 thumb of ginger, minced
2 tablespoons sunflower oil
Directions:
Measure 1/2 cup dried mushrooms. Break or cut them into small pieces. Put the bits to soak in a small bowl of water.
In a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 teaspoon mirin, 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, and 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Stir until the cornstarch dissolves. Set aside.
Separate 2 slices of thin-cut beef. Cut into bite-sized strips. Set aside.
Cut half a sweet onion into half-circles. These will separate into crescents as they cook.
Open 1 can of baby corn and drain it. Set aside.
Peel and mince 2 garlic cloves. Mince 1 thumb of ginger, which doesn't need peeling unless you just want to. Put in a small bowl (big enough to get your bamboo spatula inside) and set aside.
Heat the wok. Add 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil and the minced aromatics. Stir-fry briefly.
Add the onions and stir-fry for several minutes until they separate and just start to soften.
Drain the soaked mushrooms. Put them in the wok and stir-fry briefly.
Add the baby corn and stir-fry briefly.
Put in the beef bits and stir-fry until just browned.
Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables. It will pool in the bottom of the wok. Stir-fry until the sauce turns glossy and thickens to coat the food.
Serve the beef and vegetables over rice or another starch.
Notes:
This sauce blend has a robust flavor, and thickens up beautifully in just a minute or two. It should work well in many stir-fry recipes.
Various mushrooms come in dried form. I used shiitake mushrooms. I didn't think to break them up this time, but have noted that step for future reference.
Here we used very thin slices of beef, cut into bite-sized pieces. They cooked almost instantly.
Sweet onions come in several varieties. When cut into half-circles they break up into crescents.
Baby corn is a popular Chinese vegetable with a tender-crunchy texture. It's basically the same as regular corn, but harvested when the cobs are about thumb size.
Garlic and ginger are my go-to aromatics for stir-frying. Using the fresh roots is both healthy and delicious, much better than preserved versions.
Overall, this recipe turned out well, with rich meaty flavor and chewy texture. We found it very satisfying. I liked the overall balance, but my partner Doug thought there was more corn than anything else, so would prefer a different vegetable.