Sometimes you just really need some good ol’ fashion greasy take-out.  And this is a blog about Comfort Food.  Last night was the perfect time to pull out my Beef Broccoli and Fried Rice recipes.  The NBA All Star weekend was on, Seth was enjoying a beer in the living room so I figured instead of ordering MSG laden Chinese food, I’d make some myself.

These are two separate recipes but they’re really quick to make once you’re chopped and prepped.  I started by prepping the beef, thinly sliced, marinated and set aside to stirfry once the rice was ready.

The one thing you do need to make ahead is 1 cup of rice.  I made it in the morning after breakfast, let it cool then put it in the fridge all day as fried rice works best with really cold rice (don’t ask me why).

Ingredients for Beef Broccoli  – serves 3-4

For the Marinade:

1 large sirloin steak, fat removed and thinly sliced.

1 – 2 Tblsp. Soy sauce

1 tsp.  Rice Wine or Rice Vinegar

2 tsp of Corn Starch

Baking soda 1/4 tsp.

Black pepper to taste

Mix all of the ingredients above in a bowl, mix in the beef and allow to marinade for 30 mins.

For the Stir fry sauce:  To a bowl add..

3 Tbs. Soy sauce

2 Tbs. Oyster sauce

2 tsp.  brown sugar

1 tsp Rice wine or Rice Vinegar

1 tsp. Corn starch

Black to taste

4 Tbsp water

Stir all these ingredients and set aside

For The Stir Fry:

I used 2 packs of Broccolini ends trimmed

3 Cloves garlic finely chopped

2 Tbsp Fresh ginger finely chopped

2 Tbs. High smoke cooking oil (I used coconut)

2 scallions chopped

1 tsp. Sesame oil

Toasted Sesame seeds

I first prepared the fried rice since the Beef Broccoli cooks so quickly, the rice was still hot once I was ready to serve. But you can decide for yourself.   I’ll continue with the recipe. Also, I cook to taste a lot of the time so if you think you need more or less ingredients, do your thing!  With the stir fry sauce, just add more or less water to adjust the flavour (aka saltiness).

Cooking Instructions:

Place your wok (or large deep skillet) on the stove on high heat.  Add 2 cups of water and bring to a boil.  Blanch the broccolini and once blanched (but still crunchy), strain and set aside on a dish.

Dry your wok and place it on the stove again at high heat.  Add your cooking oil and sautee the garlic and ginger.  Add the beef and let it sear for a couple of minutes to crisp it up a little then flip it over.

When you barely see anymore red in the meat, add the stir fry sauce and stir for about 1 minute as it thickens and quickly add the broccolini and toss all together.  The broccolini should be practically cooked after being blanched so this shouldn’t take long.  Add the chopped scallion and sesame oil, stir in and you are done!

Place in a serving dish and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Ingredients for Fried Rice: 

3 Tablespoons of butter

Cooking Instructions:

First you want to scramble your eggs and set them aside to add to the rice later.

Heat 1/2 tablespoon of butter in a wok or large deep pan over medium-high heat until melted. Add egg, and cook until scrambled, stirring occasionally. Remove egg, and transfer to a separate plate.

Add an additional 1 tablespoon butter to the wok and heat until melted. Add the chopped onion and sautee for a few seconds, then add your frozen vegetables and garlic, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sauté for about 5 minutes or until the onion and vegetables are soft.

Increase heat to high and add in the remaining butter. Add the rice, green onions, soy sauce and oyster sauce and stir until combined.

Continue stirring for a few minutes to fry the rice.

Then add in the eggs and stir to combine. Remove from heat and stir in the sesame oil until combined.

Serve immediately or if you’re making the beef like I did (after the rice), then let it sit in the wok covered until you’re ready to serve.

Once both dishes were ready, I placed the rice and beef on the table set with wooden bowls and chopsticks and we each made ourselves a bowl of warm rice topped with the beef broccolini.

We were saying how any time you order out there’s a minimum amount you need to order for delivery and more times than not, you end up with way more food than you needed.  These two recipes taste delicious together or on their own and cost me a fraction of the price.  Plus, it’s pretty satisfying to sit down to a home cooked meal, wouldn’t you agree?

Happy Cooking!

Love,

Jennifer