Monday, March 28, 2011

Beef & Broccoli...Sweet & Sour Style

Growing up, we had the same thing for dinner every week. One night we would have spaghetti, one night was macaroni & cheese, tacos, pizza and maybe a short list of other cheap eats. My parents were young and trying to make it and those were our options. There was a large shopping center located right behind our neighborhood. To eat, they had Del Taco, a deli/cafe, a Mexican fast food place, Sizzler and a Chinese food place. As you can tell, our options were limited to dine out as well. Not every week, but once in a while my Mom would go get Chinese take out for us. I have loved broccoli since I was in the womb, so Beef & Broccoli is what I got.
I loved it. It made me feel grown up for some reason. It was different than the norm and I always considered it a special treat.
Today my Mom had the idea that she wanted me to make Beef & Broccoli, but with green beans for my little brother (they both hate "the little trees"). I got so exited! The memory of that yummy classic totally slipped my mind! I was in and went to the store to get the goods. I decided to make it with sweet & sour glaze, just to spice it up a little and I had to make due with what I had in the pantry.

For the Sweet & Sour:
1/2 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
3T Brown Sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
3T soy sauce
3T thai chili paste
2T flour (I ran out of corn starch)
Whisk to combine.

You can use whichever cut of beef you fancy, just chop it into bite sized pieces. Brown the meat in sesame oil, when both sides are browned but the meat is not cooked through, add the sweet & sour glaze. Cook until sauce is thickened. I steamed the broccoli first, then added it to the sauce and beef at the end. Yum!

3 comments:

  1. My first follower! Haha Thank you! And I will go add my site right now :)

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  2. Sounds a lot like my situation growing up. Tacos, hot dogs, hamburgers, Wendy's, McDonalds, etc. Your beef and broccoli looks perfect.

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  3. Yeah, that might be why I had such a fascination with food when I entered culinary school. Everything was new to me! And thank you, it was tasty :)

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