Normal Meal Time

You're wearing your old flannel shirt, comfortable jeans and reliable boots. It's been dark since 4:30 this rainy December evening. You're tired from a hard day at work, but you still have to make dinner. This is the perfect meal for such a night.

This recipe is courtesy from my friend Dai from Colorado.

Grocery List

Side Dishes

I decided to continue posting my recipes I've collected and invented over the years on Normal Meal Time. As always, my meals are healthy, cheap and quick. Here's my latest addition.

Grocery List

1 lb of beef, sliced into 1-inch by 1/2-inch strips.
1-16 oz bag frozen oriental vegetables (purchased at Giant for $1.99 ea.)
2 tbsp mirin sauce (House of Tsang is a good brand. This is essentially sweet sake wine)
1 tbsp of your favorite Asian sauce (I've used duck, soy or Korean BBQ)
1 box of long grain & wild rice mix (I use Uncle Ben's brand in the orange box)
1 tbsp Olive, sesame or peanut oil
Table salt
Optional: 1 tbsp light brown sugar, sesame seeds

Directions

The beef takes 2-3 minutes to cook, so start the rice first, then the vegetables, and finally the meat.

Cook the rice in a separate pot as per the directions on the box. Steam the vegetables with a metal strainer or nuke them in the microwave if you have a microwave safe package.

Heat your oil on medium heat in a skillet. Place the beef on the skillet once it's hot. Sprinkle a pinch of table salt over the beef and turn the meat over. Carefully pour the mirin sauce over the beef. Most of it will absorbed; the rest will cook off and steam quite a bit, so don't pour it all on at once. Cook the beef to your desired tenderness. I prefer medium, and since the beef is sliced so small, it won't take very long.

Optional Steps:

Sweeter Meat:
Mirin is fairly sweet as is, so only add brown sugar if you are desperate for diabetes or trying to make up for all the vegetables you're about to eat. Sprinkle this on after the mirin. It gives the meat a nice, browned glaze. If you're adding an Asian sauce to your vegetables, I would avoid Korean BBQ since it, too, is sweet. Contrast itby using low-sodium soy sauce.

More Tender Meat:
If you have the time, marinate the meat in a plastic, resealable bag with the mirin, salt and oil for 30 minutes prior to cooking. This makes the beef less chewy.

Fancier Meat:
To add some panache - particularly if you're cooking for a date - add sesame seeds to the beef just before it's done. It not only looks cool, it adds texture and a slightly different taste.