Stir-fried beef w/caramelized broccoli and quinoa

A hastily taken photo – I was hungry and my food was hot!

Here’s a recipe I posted back in June. Had just one comment (thank you Jenn). So, I’m thinking, why not do it again. We needed a green veg for dinner last night and we both like this way of preparing broccoli. The next question was what to have as a protein. Found some quinoa in the pantry and put that on the menu. My pet peeve about broccoli is how difficult I have found it to get it to the table nice and hot. It doesn’t seem to retain heat very well. This method solves the problem pretty successfully.

Quinoa is a perplexing thing. The package tells you to use 2 parts liquid to 1 part quinoa. Then simmer it 15 minutes until the liquid is absorbed. Well, the liquid doesn’t absorb. You have to drain it. Each time I make it I use less broth (I prefer broth to water). Last night’s was 1 2/3 cups to just under a cup of quinoa. It still required draining, but there was relatively little liquid left.

So I ended up with 2/3 pound top sirloin and I reproduced a stir-fry from a few months ago.

Spicy beef stir-fry with caramelized broccoli

Coating:
2 tablespoons freshly ground cumin

1 tablespoons dried chile flakes

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Beef Stir-Fry

10 oz. beef fillet (tenderloin)

2 tablespoons peanut oil

1 teaspoon Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry

1 tablespoon light soy sauce

1 pinch sea salt

½ medium onion, thinly sliced

1 spring onion, finely sliced (green part reserved for garnish)

To make the spicy coating: Mix all the ground cumin, dried chile flakes, black pepper, and salt, on a plate.

Mix the rice wine and soy sauce together in a small bowl.

To make the beef: Prepare the fillet by hammering it with a meat mallet, or the side of a Chinese cleaver.

Slice the beef into wafer-thin slices, and coat the pieces in the spice mix.

Heat a wok or pan over high heat and add the peanut oil. Add the beef and stir-fry for less than 1 minute until browned and tender. Remove the beef to a bowl and set aside.Add a little more oil to the wok. Stir-fry bell onions and garlic for 2 minutes until softened. Add bean sprouts and bell pepper and cook, tossing constantly, for a couple of minutes. Add noodles and beef, rice wine and soy sauce, and toss to heat.Serve immediately with the scallion greens as garnish.

Caramelized broccoli
1 broccoli crown
1 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
salt and pepper to taste
red pepper flakes (optional)

Cut off the broccoli stem, trim it and cut off the outside layer. Reduce it to 1” pieces or so. Cut the florets into 1” pieces.

Heat olive oil and butter over medium (5 on my 1-10 dial) until the butter is melted and looks about to begin browning. Add the broccoli stem pieces and sauté for 2 minutes. Sprinkle salt and pepper into the pan and the red pepper if using. Add the florets and sauté, without stirring, until the bottom side begins to brown. Flip them over and do the same to the other side. Total cooking time will be about 6 minutes, give or take. Serve at once.