Dinner
Beef Stir Fry with Asparagus
Tender marinated slices of flank steak wok-fried with bright green asparagus, scallions and water chestnuts in a savory soy and sesame sauce.
A fast, restaurant-style stir fry with a short marinade. Thinly sliced steak is marinated for 30 minutes, seared quickly in hot peanut oil, and tossed back into the wok with asparagus, scallions and water chestnuts. A cornstarch-thickened sauce ties it all together at the end.
Ingredients
Yield: 4-6
- 1-1/2 lbs. asparagus
- 4-5 scallions
- 1 lb. skirt or flank steak
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sherry or rice wine
- 1 tablespoon oil
- Sugar
- 2/3 cup beef stock
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce (optional)
- 1 cup peanut oil
- 2 slices peeled ginger
- 1 clove peeled crushed garlic
- Salt
- 1/2 cup sliced canned water chestnuts
Instructions
Author: Courtney Orlando
- Wash, peel, and roll-cut the asparagus into 1-1/2-inch pieces. Slice scallions into 1-inch pieces. Diagonally cut the beef into 1/4-inch slices.
- Marinade: combine 1 tablespoon of the cornstarch dissolved in 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce, the sherry or rice wine, 1 tablespoon oil, and a pinch of sugar. Add meat and marinate for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, mix sauce: combine remaining 1-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in 1/3 cup beef stock or water, remaining soy sauce, the sesame oil, and oyster sauce (if you wish). Set aside.
- When meat has marinated, heat peanut oil to 375° in a large sauté pan or wok. Toss in meat and cook, stirring, until meat is opaque, about 1 minute, and remove meat from pan. Drain oil, reserving 2 tablespoons, then reheat. Toss in ginger and garlic, and cook for 10 seconds. Add asparagus and scallions; stir in 1/2 teaspoon sugar and a dash of salt.
- Cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes (the asparagus will turn bright green). Add remaining stock, cover, and steam for 2 minutes. Uncover, add beef and water chestnuts, and toss together.
- Stir in the sauce and cook until lightly thickened.