Tuesday Night Dinner: Beef and Broccoli

I was really stumped this week as to what to make for dinner, so of course, I took my usual route of browsing food blogs for recipes and dinner ideas. When I search for Tuesday night dinner ideas, I tend to look for fast and easy recipes, party recipes, or budget recipes. I made my way to Steamy Kitchen, a beautiful site by a food blogger who actually just released a cookbook recently. She had the most delicious looking picture of beef and Chinese broccoli with noodles that I just couldn't get out of my head, so I knew I had to make that for dinner. I also thought it'd be a good choice because we rarely eat beef at Tuesday night dinners. It was the best decision. I've discovered a recipe that I could probably pretty easily slip into a regular rotation, and it was just so so delicious. At least, that's what I thought, and I think most everyone else agreed.

Broccoli Beef noodle stir fry (adapted from Steamy Kitchen)
1 pound flank steak, thinly sliced (Jaden recommends beef sirloin)
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
3 tablespoons dry white wine, sake, or Shaoxing wine (I used white wine)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon tapioca starch or cornstarch (I used corn starch)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 pound fresh or 10 oz dried noodles
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 large garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped
1.25 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 pound Chinese broccoli or common broccoli, cut into bite-size chunks or florets (I used Chinese broccoli that I did not bother cutting)
freshly ground black pepper

Whisk together soy sauce, oyster sauce, and wine. Add sugar and whisk until dissolved. Stir in corn starch until smooth. Add sesame oil and beef and marinate for at least 20 minutes.

Prepare noodles. You can use any kind of noodles here, just prepare according to package directions, but don't quite cook them all the way so you can finish cooking them in the saute pan at the end.

Heat vegetable oil in a skillet and stir fry garlic until fragrant. Add the beef and stir fry until tender, just a couple minutes. When you cook the beef, you should cook the slices in a single layer in your pan so it cooks evenly and creates caramelized bits. When the meat is finished, transfer it to a plate and add a little more oil to the pan. Add the broccoli and toss it so it's coated with oil. Pour in a 1/4 cup of the stock, turn the heat to medium low and cover with a lid. Cook until tender, 3 to 5 minutes and transfer to the same plate as the meat.

This is where I strayed from Jaden's recipe just a little. I tossed my noodles in the saute pan, added oyster, soy sauce, and chicken stock to taste, and tossed it around a little to flavor it and finish the cooking process. I chose to serve the noodles separate from the beef and broccoli so people could have an option of noodles or rice.

Favorite Foods: Egg Custard Tart

Can you tell I've been expanding the range of this blog? I figure we can do more than just cook and that it's all an appreciation and love for food, so I've been sharing more food-related things I love. I promise we'll never stray away from food, even if I occasionally stray from cooking. But truthfully, I eat out as often as I cook, and every once in awhile, I just have to tell you about the great things I'm eating that I didn't cook. Like this egg custard tart. This might not be the most amazing picture, but egg custard tarts are the most delicious dessert.

I always get them when I go to dim sum, which I always describe as a Chinese brunch. Think tapas or small plates, where you're getting many different small dishes. Dim sum is also fun because it's servers pushing carts around with these small dishes to your table and you picking and choosing from their carts. That's probably a really poor description, but suffice it to say, dim sum is delicious and a fun eating experience. I have terrific memories of going into Philadelphia's Chinatown with family and eating dim sum and then eating egg custard tarts or going to the bakeries and getting these.

I was craving dim sum so I took a few friends with me to Gee's Garden in Tucson and introduced them to the concept and now they're big fans. Gee's Garden, by the way, is alright food. It's nothing like Philadelphia. This photo is from last week's brunch. As it turns out, dim sum is also fabulous after a late night evening of drinks and dancing.