Teriyaki Beef Stir Fry

Welcome to day three of my week's store cupboard challenge. I have challenged myself this week to use only what I have in the house, including my refrigerator, freezer, and cupboards.
I have found myself buying loads of things that I don't need and then not getting them used up and in these days where we really need to economize I thought I would work harder at using what I already have rather than buying new things to cook.
This does take a bit of planning on my part. I need to take things out of the freezer to thaw, and I need to use what I already have in the house without picking up additional items, adapting things for purpose as and when!
Teriyaki Beef Stir Fry

I love stir fries. They are a great way of using up odds and ends of vegetables and small amounts of meat. They are also very adaptable to what you actually have in the house.
I had a small sirloin steak in the freezer and a quantity of vegetables that needed using and so today I decided to cook them in a tasty stir fry. I created a teriyaki style sauce enhance them.
Teriyaki is one of my favorite flavors. Ginger, garlic, soy, sweet, and a bit spicy.
Teriyaki Beef Stir Fry

Because I love oriental flavors so much I always keep a healthy store of the ingredients in my home. Soy sauce, fish sauce, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, rice wine vinegar, ginger, garlic . . . these are all pretty much staples when it comes to stir frying and oriental cooking.
I have a shelf on the door of my refrigerator that is totally dedicated to this type of cooking, as well as Indian cookery. That way I am always ready when I want to cook up a stir fry such as the one I have cooked today.
I don't know how authentic it is, but that doesn't really matter to me. It tasted delicious and that's what matters most!

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE TERIYAKI BEEF STIR FRY
Simple a quantity of seasonings, some good beef and a mix of fresh or frozen vegetables.

1 pound (454g) beef sirloin steak
1 TBS low sodium soy sauce
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 TBS light olive oil, divided
1 red bell pepper, trimmed, cored and cut into thin strips
3 cups chopped mixed vegetables (I used carrots, tender-stem cauliflower, cabbage, red onion, snap peas and edamame)

For the teriyaki sauce:

1/3 cup (80ml) low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup (60ml) water
3 TBS pure maple syrup
1 TBS rice vinegar
1 TBS minced fresh garlic
1 TBS minced fresh ginger
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 TBS cornstarch (corn flour)

You can totally use frozen vegetables to make a stir fry so long as you follow a few rules. Thaw them out first and then drain them really well. Also do not expect them to have the same crispness as fresh vegetables would have. They will still be delicious however.
Today all of my vegetables were fresh except for the snap peas and the edamame. I added them at the very end just to basically heat them through and they were actually fairly crisp.

HOW TO MAKE TERIYAKI BEEF STIR FRY
This is really very quick and easy to make. That's why I love stir fries to much. You can't go wrong. The key to their speed is having everything ready to go before you start cooking!

Cut your meat crosswise into thin strips and place into a bowl. Toss together with the 1 TBS of soy sauce and the 1/2 tsp black pepper. Set aside to marinate while you prepare the vegetables and the sauce. (Make sure you cut it against the grain to maximize tenderness.)Whisk all of the sauce ingredients together in a beaker. Set aside.Cut all of your vegetables into bite sized pieces or strips. I cut my carrots thinly on the diagonal, thinly sliced my cabbage, broke my cauliflower into florets, sliced my onion into half moons, de-stringed my snap peas and thawed my edamame.)Heat 1/2 of the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot add the beef. Cook, stirring, until the beef is lightly browned on all sides and cooked through. Scoop out to a plate and set aside.Heat the remainder of the oil to the skillet. add all of the vegetables, including the bell pepper. Cook for about 4 minutes until slightly softened and crispy tender. Add the beef and any accumulated juices back to the pan.Stir in the sauce and toss to coat. Cook for a further 3 to 4 minutes to thicken and warm through the meat. Serve hot with some cooked rice if desired.

This was very filling and delicious. Normally I would use spring onions as well, but I didn't have any of those so made do with the red onion that I had.
I confess I did use minute brown rice as the rice I served with it. Again, I am using up what I have in the cupboards. I normally would prefer regular rice, but I do want to get this used up.
Quick, easy, delicious, healthy, high in fiber, low in fat. This was a great meal!

No stranger to the stir fry here are a few other stir fry recipes that I have made in my kitchen. All delicious. All easy.

LEMON CHICKEN STIR FRY - This chicken stir fry has a delicious sauce with lovely lemon flavors. Fresh lemon zest and lemon pepper seasoning are used for a lovely peppery punch. I also added some fresh thyme leaves for a bit of an herby touch. I like to enjoy this with angel hair pasta or spaghettini.

CANTONESE CHICKEN CHOP SUEY - A rainbow of colors, textures and flavors. Chicken, fresh vegetables, cashew nuts, and a delicious mix of saucy ingredients and honey. Serve with crispy chow mien noodles and rice for a real oriental treat!

Yield: 2-3Author: Marie Rayner