I'm hungry and it's dinner time!
Yesterday I had a beef and orange salad that inspired me to take this wonderful combination of flavors and turn it into a delicious stir fry.
It just so happened that I had most of the ingredients already in the house. Tangerines are slightly more sweet and will lend a great flavor mixed with ginger, creating a sauce to die for. Baby bok choy is just a wonderful vegetable that lends crunch and veggie goodness to the dish. I also put in some asparagus tips for good measure.
All I needed was the beef. So I used some very thinly sliced sirloin. Something that can be cooked up quickly and stay tender.
This was a GREAT dish! Again, there is no need for take-out when you can create a masterpiece such as this one. It's way better than take-out! This dish comes together fairly easy. The most time spent is making the rice, and creating the sauce. Segmenting tangerines takes a little while and since they are a key ingredient, it's best to make the sauce first and have everything ready when you start to cook.
So this dish is a little more involved, but I was still able to get dinner on the table in about 45 minutes. I'm sure that you can buy stir fry beef, and use mandarin oranges and some juice as a way to cut time, and everything will be equally splendid.
Oh, and the topper is that this dish is LIGHT...that is low in calories. It contains no sugar, like many Asian stir frys do. The veggies are healthy and a good source of vitamins and fiber. The protein is lean, and the fruit is fresh! Great combination all the way around, and fits so well into the EAT WELL 2013 motto....I just love that!
Enjoy!
Tangerine Beef and Bok Choy Stir Fry
Serves 4
Time: 45 minutes
2 cups water
1 cup long grain white or brown rice
2 T low sodium soy sauce
1 T cornstarch
1 lb of sirloin cut into very thin strips
3 tangerines
zest of 2 tangerines
1/4 c sherry
1 T ginger, minced
1 t cornstarch
1 t toasted sesame oil
4 t canola oil, divided
2 heads of baby bok choy
1/4 lb of thin asparagus
Boil water in a medium sauce pan over high heat. Add rice, reduce and cover. Simmer rice for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile add soy sauce and cornstarch to a medium bowl. Stir to combine. Add beef strips and toss to coat. Allow to marinade while you make the sauce. No need to refrigerate.
Zest two tangerines and place zest in a medium bowl. Slice off the top and bottom of two tangerines. Running your knife from the top down the sides, remove all white pith. Segment the tangerine sections and place in the bowl. Squeeze juice into the bowl with any leftover flesh and pith. Do this with two tangerines. With the third tangerine, peel and squeeze out all the juice and place in the bowl. Add sherry, ginger, cornstarch and sesame oil. Whisk to combine.
Chop bok choy into chunks. Cut off asparagus stalks, using only the tips.
Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large skillet. Remove beef from the marinade and place in hot skillet. Stir fry, turning often, for about 3-4 minutes until just cooked through. Remove from skillet to a bowl. Add remaining 2 teaspoons of oil and heat. Add bok choy and asparagus to the skillet and stir fry for about 3 minutes until tender. Add tangerine sauce. Add beef and stir to coat, and allow sauce to thicken.
Serve over rice.
