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beef stir fry

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Gluten Free Meat & Poultry

How To Make A Quick Beef Stir Fry (gluten free).

3 Comments on How To Make A Quick Beef Stir Fry (gluten free).

stir fry beef with peppers (11)

This recipe takes me back to a time when I was in my early teens and I’d go to watch movies on the weekend in San Fernando (Trinidad) with my bother and our dad. There was a Chinese restaurant on Mucurapo Street where we’d usually end up as I’ve had a weakness for Chinese food for as long as I can remember and they had a delicious beef stir fry I craved (they enjoyed the food too). This beef stir fry recipe is very different from that one, but it’s just as satisfying and a good fix for my friends who are on a gluten free diet.

 

You’ll Need…

3/4 lb beef (thinly sliced across the grain)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 scallions
3 cups bell peppers
3 thin slices of ginger
2 cloves of garlic diced
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper
1/2 teaspoon Caribbean Green Seasoning
1/4 teaspoon Caribbean browning

* Be sure to get “Caribbean Browning” that’s gluten free (read the label). It can be purchased at most west Indian type grocery stores.

stir fry beef with peppers (1)

Thinly slice the beef across the grain and marinate with the Caribbean Green Seasoning, salt and black pepper for about 1/2 hour in the fridge.

stir fry beef with peppers (2)

Prep the other ingredients so when it’s time to cook everything will be ready. Chop the bell peppers and scallion, slice the ginger and dice the garlic and scotch bonnet finely. Remember to NOT leave any seeds from the scotch bonnet and be sure to wash your hands immediately after with soap and water.

Now heat a heavy wide pan (or wok) on medium high heat and toss in the seasoned pieces of beef. Stir well to cook though quickly. It will cook for about 4-6 minutes and as it does, make a space in the center of the pan and add the diced scotch bonnet, garlic and slices of ginger.

stir fry beef with peppers (4)

stir fry beef with peppers (5)

stir fry beef with peppers (6)

Please add the Caribbean Browning (if you cannot source it, use 1 teaspoon soy sauce and the same amount of oyster sauce – be sure it’s gluten free if you want to maintain a gluten free recipe) and mix it well to add color to all the pieces of beef.

Add the bell peppers and scallions and cook for about 3 minutes (depends on how tender you want the peppers). taste for salt and adjust accordingly.

stir fry beef with peppers (7)

stir fry beef with peppers (8)

stir fry beef with peppers (9)

stir fry beef with peppers (10)

You’ll notice that I tried to keep this recipe as “Caribbean” as I could, but I must confess that the Chinese version with the  Chinese cooking wine, Soy, Oyster Sauce and a bit of Hoisin sauce is till my fave! I also like add a bit of chopped bok choi and thinly sliced carrots when I want to stretch this beef stir fry to feed more people. If using soy be sure to keep that in mind when seasoning the beef with salt as the soy will add a salty element to the dish.

Meat & Poultry

Spicy Beef Noodle Stir Fry.

8 Comments on Spicy Beef Noodle Stir Fry.

One of the first things I look forward to when I visit my homeland (besides doubles and bake and shark sandwiches) is the island influenced Chinese food, which is a huge part of our everyday culinary landscape. As I’ve talked about in the past, the Chinese (workers who came to the Caribbean after slavery was abolished) contribution to our melting pot is tremendous and on islands like Jamaica, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago as well as Guyana  it’s quite evident in the passion we have for such dishes.

This spicy beef noodle stir fry is yet another one of those dishes where you’ll see a Caribbean stamp on a classic Chinese dish.

 

You’ll Need…

1/4 lb beef (sliced thin)
1/4 teaspoon 5 spice powder
8 oz egg noodle (cook according to package directions)
1 carrot
2 cups bean sprouts (or cabbage)
1 large onion
1 clove garlic
1 tablespoon grated ginger
2 scallions
1/4 scotch bonnet pepper (diced fine – no seeds)
2 cups sweet pepper (bell – different colors)
1 cup broccoli
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 table spoon vegetable oil (divided)
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup snow peas

For the sauce….

2 tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon soya sauce
1/4 cup orange juice
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

Tip: To get thinly sliced beef, firm it a bit in the freezer. If it’s fully thawed it may be difficult to handle.

It’s important when doing a stir fry that you have everything prepped as the goal is to cook fast on high heat. So with your beef sliced thin, season it with the salt, grated ginger and the five spice powder (see Asian and West Indian grocery stores for this) and allow it to marinate for about 10 minutes. In the meantime peel, chop and cube your vegetables. Remember to try and keep them uniform in size so they cook evenly.

Tip 2. I usually cook the noodles before and allow it to drain and cool a bit. Follow the package cooking instructions, but cut back on the boiling time a bit. So if it says to boil for 6 minutes, only do so for 4 minutes. You don’t want to risk it being overcooked and soggy when you add it to dish.

In a wok or huge non-stick frying pan heat 2 tablespoon of the veg oil and add the seasoned beef. Cook for 3-4 minutes, then remove and set aside. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and heat for a minute. Now add the sliced onion and grated garlic.. cook for a minute, then start adding the vegetables, except the bean sprouts and scallions. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

The idea is to soften up the vegetables, allow it to release it’s flavors, but still have a little crunch to them. Move the vegetables to the side to form a sort of hole in the middle of the pan and add all the ingredients for the sauce. We need to heat it a bit to really release their flavors. Now mix everything well so the vegetables are coasted with this lovely sauce. The orange juice  may seem a bit strange, but trust me on this.

Add the pre-cooked beef back to the wok, top with the cooked noodles and toss well. Now it’s time to top with the bean sprouts and chopped scallions and mix well.Cook for a further minute or 2.

This is one of those one pot meals, where you’ll have your vegetables, protein (beef) and carbs from the noodles.. the flavors from the ingredients in the sauce we made will be outstanding and the fact that we cooked this quickly on high heat will give it a wonderful texture. Don’t sleep on the ginger  and 5 spice powder we marinated to beef with as it will certainly get your taste buds exploding with excitement.

Remember when handling hot peppers like scotch bonnet to wear gloves, wash your hands immediately after with soap and water and don’t include any seeds. The seeds and white membrane surrounding the seeds is where the killer-heat will be.

There was enough here for 4-5 people in case you’re wondering.

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