Shredded Beef & Ginger Stir Fry

Having recently been given the most amazing new gift - a terracotta, flame and oven proof wok - I have taken to making stir fry’s with a serious amount of zeal.  I love to make this kind of aromatic, flash fried dish: I think it is something to do with the meditative experience of finely slicing the ingredients, the rainbow array of colours involved, and of course the pleasure of creating such quick and delicious meals; and that’s before you have the zen like experience of eating your fare with chop sticks! 

I had thought about posting my Ginger and Garlic Pork Stir Fry recipe or perhaps my Pork and Prawn Pad Thai.  But after much consideration, and a look in my fridge (always a good gauge for what to cook) I decided on offering up my Shredded Beef and Ginger Stir Fry.  Here, I use strips of dense rump steak marinated in toasted sesame oil, a little five spice and a good dose of sweet and hot stem ginger.  The result is a lively dish with a wonderful medley of flavours, perfect for energising you and adding a bit of zing to your evening. 

You will see that I have included bouillon powder and brown sugar in my recipe.  Not such a conventional combination I admit.  The reason for this is that when bouillon powder, brown sugar and the tablespoon of hot water are combined, they create a perfect substitute for soy sauce.  The salt from the bouillon is matched by the sweetness of the sugar, giving you a strong base on which you can add your own variety of spices and flavours.  I use this mixture as the building blocks to all my stir fry recipes, relying on it to give my dishes that somewhat mysterious fifth taste, umami.

SHREDDED BEEF AND GINGER STIR FRY

Serves 2

250g rump steak

2 tsp toasted sesame oil

1 tsp soft brown sugar

1 tsp powdered vegetable bouillon (Marigold Swiss GF, DF & yeast free vegetable bouillon powder)

2 tbsp water

½ tsp five spice powder

A pinch of sea salt

2 balls of stem ginger

½ tbsp groundnut oil

200g broccoli – florets, tenderstem or purple sprouting

Begin by making up the marinade for the beef: mix together the powdered stock, sesame oil, sugar, five spice, sea salt and water until you have a smooth paste.  Trim the broccoli and cut in to single stems or florets; finely slice the stem ginger in to thin strips and cut the rump steak, lengthways, into lean strips – approximately ½ cm in width.  Add the cut beef to the marinade, mix well and then leave to marinate for 10 – 30 minutes.

Heat the groundnut oil in a wok until smoking hot, scoop the beef out of its marinade and stir fry for 1 minute.  Add the broccoli to the wok and continue to stir fry for 5 minutes until just tender.  Pour the remaining marinade over the beef and beans and stir fry for a further 2 minutes.  Take off the heat and serve immediately with a bowl of steamed white basmati rice.

Swedish Meatballs with Mustard Cream Sauce

Today is a pretty important day.  Firstly, it is the 2^nd of February which means that we are at that stage in the seasons when the skies start to lighten, the air, although still crisp, is warmed through with beams of sunshine; all the better to remind us that spring is on her way.  Secondly and most importantly, it is the birthday of the most spectacular Swede you ever did meet, my brother in law, Jon.  Now, without going over the top, I have to tell you that he is a very nice man, with a very nice moustache and I am very pleased that he is married to my equally wonderful sister.

More importantly still, the fact that he is Swedish means that I get the opportunity to have a crack at one the best international dishes ever – Swedish Meatballs with Mustard Cream Sauce.  I imagine that my rendition of this dish is a little lacking in authenticity, but my enthusiasm for making it totally outweighs any embarrassment I should feel, and so I dedicate this homage to all things Swedish, to the very nice Mr Jon Vall.

Here, the combination of beef and pork melds together to make deliciously dense meatballs; while the creamy mustard sauce adds a delicate kick to the proceedings.  Traditionally, meatballs should be served with lingonberry preserve, a sweet – sharp sauce made with a delightful, tangy Swedish berry.  You can find it in specialist shops, good delis or indeed, in the food department of your nearest Ikea!  If you can’t get hold of any then the English equivalent is cranberry sauce, it is less superior than its Swedish counterpart but it is imperative that you serve the meatballs with some red, tangy variation.  I do believe that the Swedes like to eat their meatballs with boiled potatoes or perhaps some plain noodles to soak up the sauces, but today I am serving them with a warm bowl of creamy mashed potato, all the better to keep in the warmth of all that birthday love.

SWEDISH MEATBALLS WITH MUSTARD CREAM SAUCE

Serves 4

For the meatballs

350g minced pork

350g minced beef

1 small red onion

¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

3 allspice berries

3 black peppercorns

1tsp sea salt flakes

For the sauce

2 tbsp butter replacement (Pure Sunflower Spread)

1 tbsp groundnut oil

1 tbsp Doves Farm Plain Gluten Free Flour

2 heaped tsp of mustard powder

250 ml hot beef stock

150ml Oat Cream (Oatly Oat Cream)

A small bunch of fresh parsley

Begin by peeling the onion and chopping very finely.  Place the sea salt flakes, peppercorns and allspice berries in a pestle and mortar and grind until powdery, grate in the nutmeg.  Then, using a food processor (you can do this by hand but it is much easier this way), blitz the onion, pork, beef, spices and seasoning until blended together and less coarse in texture.  Scoop a little of the meat out with your hands and roll into an even 3cm ball – it really helps if your hands are a little cold – and set aside, in a single layer, on a lined baking tray or board.  Repeat this process until you have used up all the mixture and have approximately 40 meatballs.  Cover and place in the fridge and leave to chill for a minimum of 1 hour.

When you are ready to cook, heat half the butter replacement with the oil in a large, heavy based skillet or frying pan (just make sure that it is not non stick as you are going to scrape it later on) over a medium to high heat.  Wait for the butter replacement to have melted in to the oil and then add the meatballs – in batches, roughly 8 at a time – and cook for 4 -6 minutes or until browned all over.  Once sufficiently browned, remove them from the pan and set aside.

Add the remaining butter replacement, flour and mustard flour to the pan and stir vigorously to form a roux paste.  Gradually pour in the stock, little by little, whisking as you go, scraping up any cooked on meaty bits that may be lingering at the base of the pan, so that you have a smooth, velvety sauce.  Remove from the heat momentarily and pour in the oat cream, whisk together gently and sprinkle in the chopped parsley.  Return the meatballs to the pan with their juices, bring to the boil and then simmer gently for a further 10 minutes until tender, season the sauce to taste and then serve piping hot with a good dollop of lingonberry preserve.