Steak, Chips and Salad

The good ol' Steak, Chips and Salad is one of my favourite dinner meals!  I think the sauce makes the dish very satisfying and my favourite sauces to go with the steak is either diane sauce or pepper sauce.


All you need to serve 2 people:
2 good quality rump steaks
half packet of frozen chips
mixed salad of your choice

for the sauce:
2 onions sliced finely
clove of garlic crushed and chopped
2 tomatoes chopped/diced 
1 pkt of pepper sauce (any brand)
1- 2 tbs of worcheshire sauce
some red wine - i use a glug or 2..or 3...
1 tbs of butter (depending how glossy you want the sauce to look)

Method:





Preheat oven at 220C and bake frozen chips are per packet instructions.  You can deep fry this at the end but I prefer my chips baked.


Meanwhile melt butter into skillet, add in onions and garlic and saute.  Next add in the tomatoes and cook til soften.

Add in the pepper sauce, worcheshire, and red wine.  Simmer for 15 minutes and taste.  If the sauce looks too thick for your liking, you can thin it down with some water.  Stir.
Put the skillet aside.

Next oil or butter another skillet and cook your steak to rare/medium or cooked.  Depending how you like your steak.  I like mine just pink in the middle.  Watch your steak otherwise it might end up tasting tough and not tender.

Put the steak on the arrange plates and ladle the sauce over, arrange salad and hot chips on the side (should be done by  now)  and serve immediately!....with a bottle of red.. :)

Stuffed Beef Capsicum

Stuffed Beef Capsicum is what I had for dinner several weeks ago but didn't have the time to update yet again!   Usually at the end of the week I have left overs of unused frozen beef mince, capsicums, carrots and mushrooms and anything that I haven't really used when I buy fresh groceries on the weekend.  In the pantry I would have bits and pieces of shitake mushrooms, clear vermicelli noodles, onions and garlic. 

I could of chopped all of the vegetables up and stir fried it with clear noodles and eaten it that way but I chose to use the capsicums and stuffed it with leftovers.  It looks more pretty that way and surely it tasted great too hehe.  I know that most stuffed capsicum recipes use rice to stuff but I just used lots of clear vermicelli noodles!

I didn't really measure the ingredients (yet again).  I just pretty much worked with what I have :).

Stuffed Beef Capsicum

Ingredients:
* 2 to 3 red or green capsicums
* 300 grams of beef mince
* half pack of vermicelli noodle, soaked and chopped roughly 
* handful of shitake mushrooms, soaked and chopped roughly
* oil
* 3 cloves of garlic chopped
* 1 onion diced
* 1 carrot grated
* 1 egg
* oyster sauce
* soy sauce
* dash of sesame oil
* white pepper and salt to taste

Method:
Firstly, de-seed the capsicums and scoop out the membrane bits and wash.  Set aside.
Preheat oven to about 180 degrees
Mix all the ingredients above until well incorporated.
On a large sized pan, cook the beef mixture halfway (til looks like it is nearly done).
Transfer the beef mixture into the capsicums and drizzle with olive oil.
Bake in a baking tray for about 30 to 40 minutes til done

Steak with Pepper Tomato Onion Mushroom Sauce and Couscous and Salad

I love steak and I have it at least once a week usually on the weekend.  I love it done medium rare with a nice peppery tomato mushroom onion sauce on top and couscous and salad on the side.

All you need to serve 2 people:
2 good quality rump steaks
1 cup of couscous
1 cup of water (for couscous)
mixed salad of your choice

for the sauce:
2 onions sliced finely
clove of garlic crushed and chopped
500 grams of mushroom sliced
2 tomatoes chopped/diced 
1 pkt of pepper sauce (any brand)
1- 2 tbs of worcheshire sauce
some red wine - i use a glug or 2..or 3...
1 tbs of butter (depending how glossy you want the sauce to look)

Method:
Firstly melt butter into skillet, add in onions and garlic and saute.  Next add in the tomatoes and mushrooms.  Cook til the mushrooms and tomatoes soften.
Add in the pepper sauce, worcheshire, and red wine.  Simmer for 15 minutes and taste.  If the sauce looks too thick for your liking, you can thin it down with some water.  Stir.
Put the skillet aside.

Next oil or butter another skillet and cook your steak to rare/medium or cooked.  Depending how you like your steak.  I like mine just pink in the middle.  Watch your steak otherwise it might end up tasting tough and not tender.

Meanwhile, add boiling water to your couscous into a bowl and cover.  It takes about 5 minutes for the couscous to be light and fluffy.  Add in butter if you want and mix.   Arrange couscous and salad on plate.

Put the steak on the arrange plates and ladle the sauce over and serve immediately!

This is a simple yet healthy dish to make.  You can have hot chips on the side but I like to keep the food a bit healthy hehe.  Remember you don't have to add any butter to any of the ingredients here.  I just like the butter to give it more flavour!

Rich Beef Casserole

Rich Beef Casserole

It is getting cooler and I thought "well time to make a yummy casserole dish!"  I love how this rich beef casserole is full of flavour and it makes a nice winter dish and the best comfort food.   Slow simmering the beef makes it nice and tender and you can use cheaper cuts of meats.    I like this with rice (yeah Asian styles lol) but traditionally you eat this on mashed potatoes, greens on the side and bread.  It is easy to make and if you are on a budget try this!


RICH BEEF CASSEROLE 

To serve 2 to 3 people you will need:

• 1 TBS olive oil
• 500 diced beef
• 2tsp of corn flour
• 1 onion sliced
• 2 cloves garlic crushed or silvered 
• 2 cups mushrooms cut in halves
• 2 carrots sliced
• 4 TBS of tomato paste
• 500 ml of beef stock
• 1 TBS red wine vinegar or red wine (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste
• sprinkle of herbs (thyme or oregano whichever you prefer)

METHOD

In a jug, mix together corn flour, tomato paste, red wine vinegar/wine, herbs and stock.  Set aside.

In a casserole dish (crock pot/ heavy based sauce pan),  add in beef, onion, garlic, mushrooms, oil, carrots and herbs.

Add the stock mix into the casserole dish (1st step).

Add all the ingredients together and stock. 

Put the casserole dish on high heat then bring to medium low.   Simmer for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until the beef is tender making sure in between times stirring occasionally.  Add salt and pepper to taste (if you think its not salty enough for you).

When the sauce has thickened it will be done!  Serve over rice or mash potatoes and green beans.

Mmm too easy!  One pot!

Vietnamese Beef Curry (Cari Bo)

 

Cari Bo

Hi guys!  It seemed so long ago since I last posted (only last week lol)!  I have been busy with a project and I haven't had time to post anything up.   I have been using my old point and shoot camera so some photos don't do any justice lol.  

Today I like to share you with something my mum cooks about once a month whenever I come over for dinner.  She likes this as much as I do.   It is called Vietnamese Beef Curry or Cari Bo.  It is simply slowly cooked beef brisket in a nice mouth watering spicy coconut soup with cooked carrots and potatoes.   I usually eat this in a large bowl, served with 3 small potatoes, not so much carrots and chunks of beef brisket ladled over with the spicy coconut soup.  Usually it is eaten with rice noodles, french bread or even rice.   I personally like Cari Bo served with toasted french bread dipped into the curry soup.  I think it is a South Vietnamese thing.   Sometimes I sandwich the beef brisket, potato and carrots in the bread and dunk it into the sauce and eat like that.  I get so full .....and I am so satisfied!!

I hadn't had time to ask mum for the recipe but I found a recipe from 101rcookingrecipes. 

Vietnamese Beef Curry (Cari Bo) 

http://www.101cookingrecipes.com/vietnamese-cooking-recipes/beef-curry-cari-bo.php

Ingredients

900g / 2 lb stewing beef, cut into 5cm / 2 inch cubes

2 tbsp grated fresh ginger

1 large onion, finely chopped

6 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

3 fresh red chilies, finely chopped

3 tbsp curry powder, preferably Madras

2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

2 tsp salt

3 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil

4 tbsp fish sauce

4 carrots, cut into 2.5cm / 1 inch chunks

2 tbsp cornflour

500ml / 16 fl oz canned unsweetened coconut milk, well stirred

Method :
 

Combine the beef, ginger, onion, garlic, chilies, curry powder, turmeric, sugar, pepper, and 1 tsp of the salt. Cover and leave to marinate for 2 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan and high heat. Add the marinated beef and stir quickly to seal, about 3 minutes. Add 750ml / 1.25 pints hot water, the fish sauce, and the remaining 1 tsp salt. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the beef is almost tender, about 1 hour.

Add the carrots and simmer, stirring occasionally, for a further 15 minutes. Dissolve the cornflour in the coconut milk and stir the mixture into the stew. Continue simmering, uncovered, stirring to prevent sticking, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. Ladle the curry into a soup tureen and serve immediately.

Maki Sushi (Rolled Sushi)

Last night my Japanese friend and I made maki sushi.  Well technically I did all the work and he just showed me how lol. Yeah, I will not go into it further >_<. This is my very first time making anything Japanese! I had a difficult time spreading the sushi rice onto the nori (roasted seaweed paper) and had a very difficult time rolling up the sushi with the mat. It was...pathetic! lol.

My Japanese friend calls it Maki Sushi...he doesn't say sushi but "maki sushi" which is just "rolled sushi" in English. Maki Sushi is so easy to make and you can pretty much put anything in the roll! It is similar to Vietnamese Rice rolls but instead of the rice paper and rice noodles, Japanese have the nori and sushi rice flavoured with sushi vinegar.

Essentials!

The ingredients I put in the roll were fried eggs, cucumber, cooked chicken, canned tuna and loads of mayonnaise. It tasted pretty alright for the first time even my Japanese friend agreed!

Here is a simple recipe of:

MAKI SUSHI (adapted from Pandaroo Brand)

• 500g cooked sushi rice
• 1 tbsp of sushi vinegar
• 5 sheets of seaweed
• wasabi
• choice of filling:  I used cucumber, canned tuna, chicken, fried eggs and mayo.  You can also use prawns, avocado, lettuce ...whatever suits your fancy

I was suppose to leave 5cms free of rice at the end.  But hey it did turn out okay at the end :)

Method:


1.  Pour sushi vinegar over cooked sushi rice and mix thoroughly
2.  On a sushi mat, place the shiny seaweed part down
3.  Spread the vinegar flavoured rice evenly over the seaweed.  Leave 5 cms of one end of free rice.
4. Place fillings in a line
5. Starting from the end with fillings lift the bamboo mat and begin to roll the sheet.  Wet the strip end.  Apply gentle pressure to join edges of seaweed.
6. Slice with wet knife and enjoy!

Indonesian Beef Rendang

I remember I had Indonesian beef rendang late last year in November 2009.   It was part for a Muslim celebration my neighbour invited me to come a long. The food was different but fabulous. My favourite dish of course was the rendang. It is a very nice beef not very like curry that is slowly cooked through coconut milk and spices like turmeric, ginger, galangal, turmeric leaf, lemon grass and chillies. You can eat it over rice or with rice blocks.

I loved it so much that I had to make it myself.    So I searched for a simple recipe and turned out nearly the same :).

Here is an easy recipe I got off Indochef.com

Ingredients:

• 500 gr. Rump steak.
• 2 Onions.
• 4 Garlic cloves.
• 3 Fresh red chillies.
• 2½ cm Ginger root.
• 1 teaspoon Turmeric.
• 1 tablespoon Paprika.
• 1 stalk Lemon grass.
• 3 Lime leaves.
• 600 ml Coconut milk.
• 75 ml water.

Preparation:

• Put the Onions, Garlic, Chillies, Ginger, Paprika, Turmeric and Water in a food processor and make into a smooth paste.
• Dice the meat and mix with half the paste. Set aside.
• Put the other half of the paste into a heavy sauce pan and add the coconut milk, chopped lemon grass and lime leaves. Boil without the lid for about 30 min. until mixture is reduced to half. Add the meat mixture and return to boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered, stirring regularly, for a further hour till the steak is tender. Serve with boiled rice.

Read more: http://www.indochef.com/indo_06.shtml

Beef on Mustard Greens

Beef on Mustard Greens is always a favourite in my home. I always tend to cook this up because it is easy, quick and healthy. Moreover, the ingredients are always available in my fridge. The recipe takes about 15 minutes to cook and usually served with jasmine rice.

With my version of Beef on Mustard Greens I use hoi sin sauce just to give it more flavour! It's delicious because yes I made it lol and such a homey meal. The gravy that is made out the juicy beef is just mouth watering and the mustard greens leaves a nice crunch when steamed/fried for a couple of minutes. Sometimes I eat this dish with vermicelli noodles or even eggs noodles but overall I prefer it with a nice bowl of rice. If the sauce is not salty enough for me I suggest to make a small bowl of soy sauce mixed with sesame oil and if you like spice add chopped chilli! YUMMM!!

Well if you want to try this ..........here is the recipe. Note: I don't really measure the sauces....I just go by my taste...you know trial and error :P. These are just approximate measurements.


Beef on Mustard Greens (serves 2)

• 500 grams of beef (ground or rump etc) sliced thinly
• 1 bunch of mustard greens, washed thoroughly, drained and halved
• vegetable oil
• 1 onion sliced
• 3 cloves of garlic sliced
• 2 tbs of hoi sin sauce
• 1 tbs of light soy sauce and extra
  
• 3/4 cup of water
• 1 tsp of cornstarch
• salt and pepper to taste
• jasmine rice, cooked (follow instructions on packet)
  

Method:

1. Firstly cook rice according to instructions
2. In a fry pan, add garlic and fry til fragrant. Then add the mustard greens and stir fry until tender on medium high heat. Add some light soy sauce. Remove from pan and set aside on a plate.
3. In a small bowl add cornstarch, water, light soy sauce and hoi sin sauce and mix well until cornstarch dissolves. Set aside.
   
4. In the same pan, add onion and garlic and stir fry til onion is half way cooked. Then add the beef strips. Stir fry til its browned. Remove beef and lay this on top of the mustard greens. The pan should have some of the broth/juice left over from cooking the beef.
   
5. With the cornstarch mixture, add that into the same pan and cook until the sauce thickens. Add in the beef and stir around until coated. Take out and lay on greens again. And top with the gravy generously.
6. Serve with rice!
   

Okay off to make chicken wings tonight! :). Have a good day.

Beef Spaghetti with Black Pepper Sauce

I made this "Beef Spaghetti with Black Pepper Sauce" tonight alternative to the traditional bolognese recipe. It was pretty good! I remember having black pepper sauce with spaghetti at budget David's Sizzling Steak (at Market Square Sunnybank Brisbane) as a side dish to their steaks and other mains. It tasted really peppery and it really suited with their egg that was still runny in the middle. Mmm mmm! I haven't gone back to Sunnybank for ages because Lil Taipei food court has pretty much closed down (apart from David Sizzling Steak is still there and a bubbel tea shop I think). It used to be very busy now all I can see is tumble weed passing throughout the now creepy place lol. That's another story!

Beef Spaghetti with Black Pepper Sauce

To serve 2 people for this dish all you need is:

• 250gram of thick spaghetti (half a pack)
• 1 onion sliced
• 2 cloves garlic sliced
  
• 1 carrot chopped into thick slices
• 2 tbs of oyster sauce
• 2 tbs of light soy sauce
• 1- 2 tsp of black pepper and extra
  
• salt
  
• 1 cup water
  
• 1 tsp of corn flour

Method:

1. First off bring water to boil in a pot and cook spaghetti according to instructions. Then drain and set aside.
   
2. In a bowl combine oyster sauce, soy sauce, pepper, and salt. In another bowl add water and cornflour together until the cornflour had dissolved. Add this mixture into the sauce mixture and combine.
3. In a saucepan fry onion and garlic til cooked. Add the carrots and cook
4. Add beef strips into the same pan and cook til its brown. Do not over cook it. Add pepper and salt. Add in the sauce mixture and coat the beef.
5. Simmer for 3 minutes
   
6. Add the spaghetti into the mixture and coat spaghetti well.
7. Then with tongs lay spaghetti onto a plate and top with beef strip
   

Beef Lasagna

This was my first time making an easy beef lasagna and it turned out really good! It wasn't mushy and gluggy like the ones I watched on Youtube! It turned out crispy and not dry and that's what I wanted. I was afraid that I didn't put enough meat sauce between the layers of the sheets but it turned out just right. Maybe when I bake it the second time I will put more meat sauce just to make the lasagna look a bit fatter :P.








Beef Lasagna (by San Remo)

• 250g San Remo Large Instant Lasagna
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• 1 onion finely chopped
• 1 carrot finely chopped (I omitted it, added mushrooms instead)
• 1 clove of garlic crushed
• 500g of minced beef
• 5 tbsp of tomato paste
• 2 x 400g canned tomatoes
• 2 cups chicken stock (I just used water)
• salt and pepper to taste
• pinch of nutmeg (I omitted it, added oregano or Italian herbs)
• 2 tbsp of butter
• 2 tbsp of flour
• 2 cups of milk
• 125g of mozzerella cheese (I put more cheese in it :P....)

Meat Sauce:
Heat oil in sauce pan. Add onion, carrot and garlic and cook until soft. Then add the beef mince and cook til browned. Stir in tomato paste, canned tomatoes and chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper and nutmeg. Cover and cook gently for 20 minutes.

Cheese Sauce:
Melt butter in separate saucepan, stir in flour and cook for 2 minutes over gentle heat. Remove from heat and stir in the milk. Return to heat, stir til thick and smooth. Season with salt and pepper and add the cheese stirring over low heat til cheese melts.

Assembly:
Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Pour half cup of meat sauce into lightly greased baking dish. Alternate layers of lasagna, meat and cheese sauces ending with cheese sauce layer (allow four layers).

So - meat sauce first, sheets, meat sauce, cheese, sheets, meat sauce, cheese, sheets.....and repeat ending with cheese sauce layer.

Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese, bake in oven for 35 minutes to 40 minutes or until cooked through. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Can serve with hot chips or salad on the side.

Hint: Make sure the lasagna sheets are completely covered with the meat sauce to retain high level of moisture.