Tag Archives: beef

Easy Pepper Steak Sandwiches

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , ,

Because my family is not big on eating a lot of beef we only have steaks about twice each month. Sometimes even twice per month is too much for steak but I still like to fix some type of beef just to break up the menu from having chicken dinners. That is where London Broil comes in. Deli sliced London Broil to be exact.

Back when date night meant reservations at an upscale restaurant, hubby would take me to one of my favorite places called Harry’s Savoy Grill which is known for Delicious (with a capital D) steaks. Harry’s is where I fell in like with London Broil steaks. Their steaks are so tender you can practically cut it with your fork. Plus, Harry’s is the only restaurant where I will order my steak medium rare as I am not one to eat anything at a rare temperature. I make my exception with London Broil.

Now date night is more causal and we tend to do take out for dinner so we can sit on the porch or watch a movie. Of course, that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying London Broil. Because I have not figured out a way to make flank steak really tender, I decided to use deli sliced London Broil for an Easy Pepper Steak Sandwich. Instead of spending time marinating slices of flank steak I use thinly sliced London Broil since the meat is already tender. I just simmer the meat in a light sauce with sauteed onions and peppers to make the sandwiches more flavorful and Delicious with a capital D!

If you are true beef eater, check out this recipe for an alternative to a heavy steak or burger. I think you just might like it.

Easy Pepper Steak Sandwiches

Ingredients:

1 – 1 ½ lbs London Broil deli slices

1 medium onion sliced

1 small green pepper sliced

1 small red pepper sliced

1 garlic clove minced

½ cup chicken or beef broth

3 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp olive oil or grape seed oil

1 tbsp minced fresh ginger

1 tbsp cornstarch

½ tsp Kosher salt

¼ tsp ground black pepper

pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)

Place soy sauce, ginger, cornstarch and garlic in a small bowl and stir to mix well. Set aside.

Add olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium high heat. Add peppers and onions to the skillet. Season veggies with salt, ground black pepper and red pepper flakes. Stir and let cook for approximately 3 – 5 minutes until the veggies slightly soften.

Stir in broth and soy sauce mixture to the skillet and reduce heat to medium low. Add in the deli slices of London Broil. Gently turn the meat to make sure both sides are coated with gravy. Let simmer for 1 – 2 minutes. Serve on a hoagie roll or your favorite sandwich roll.

Advertisement

Crostini Delights

Appetizers, Meat/ Poultry, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , ,

img_6195_1

Not too long ago I was watching an episode of the Sandwich King on the Food Network channel and he gave me an idea for a recipe. Granted, his version of a steak crostini was much more high end than mine but I would put my Crostini Delights up against his any day. No Jeff Mauro, that is not a challenge.

img_6207_1

My family is not big on eating beef so making a light dish with a little beef was right up my alley. Crostini Delights can easily be adapted to whatever you like on slices of french bread. Before I made my Crostini Delights for my hubby he only raved about having bruschetta which I layered on thin slices of french bread. Now, he raves about the “Delights”.

img_6217_1

On the Sandwich King, the host flashed fried thin slices of filet mignon and built layers of meat, pesto, rosemary, gorgonzola cheese and sliced cherry tomatoes. Like I said, his version is high end. My version uses deli slices of London broil instead of filet mignon which still has great flavor and is very tender. To make the crostinis my own I paired different ingredients to create a melt in your mouth treat. Put this recipe on the list for your next dinner party as an appetizer and I am sure your guests will be raving about the great taste of the Crostini Delights.

img_6224_1

img_6222_1

Crostini Delights

 Ingredients:

1 thin crusty french bread loaf

½ lb deli sliced London broil

¼ lb sliced provolone cheese

2 Roma tomatoes sliced then cut in half

½ cup gorgonzola cheese

¼ cup BBQ sauce

basil leaves

olive oil for drizzling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Slice entire french bread loaf at an angle to create bite sized pieces of sliced. Drizzle olive oil over each slice of bread. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 5-8 minutes until bread is lightly browned. Remove from oven.

While bread is baking, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Pour BBQ sauce around the bottom of the pan then add the slices of London broil. Quickly toss the meat in the warm pan until well coated with sauce. Turn off heat.

Once the bread is lightly browned layer each slice with gorgonzola cheese, London broil, a basil leaf, two pieces of tomato then top with a little provolone cheese. Place back in the oven for a few minutes until the provolone cheese melts. Serve immediately.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Pepper Steak

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , , , , ,

img_6057_1

Today was a non-chicken day since we had just enjoyed a chicken pasta dish and I planned on making chicken again in a couple of days. Only certain folks can eat chicken almost every day but I am not one of them. I do like chicken just not every day. There are times when I think I might grow feathers if I eat one more chicken dish.

img_6066_1

Because it was a non-chicken day and I had run out of ideas I decided to flip through a food magazine to get help with what I could prepare for dinner. Half-way through the magazine I saw a beautiful picture of a Pepper Steak meal and Bingo I knew what we were having for dinner. I had a few red and green peppers that were getting soft and I always have onions on hand. I checked the freezer and I had a package of thinly sliced sirloin petite steaks. One pepper steak dinner coming up!

img_6079_1

Granted, I had not made Pepper Steak in many, many years. I couldn’t even find my original recipe so I had to look up a couple of recipes online. I more or less combined a few of the recipes I found and then added my own twist.

A few tips on how to make a good Pepper Steak.

  1. Be sure to buy thinly sliced steak. Trust me. If you use a thicker slice of steak, the meat will be tough and chewy.

  2. Marinate the steak to make the meat flavorful and tender.

  3. Use ginger in the marinade. The flavor is bold and pairs well with the beef.

img_6107_1

Pepper Steak may become one of my new favorite dishes besides pork chops. I surprised myself with how good this dish was on the first try. I think the next time I prepare the recipe I will add snow peas or pea pods to jazz it up even more. Then again, why mess with a good thing.

img_6116_1

Pepper Steak

Ingredients:

1pkg sirloin petite steak sliced thin. Cut into strips.

4 plum tomatoes cut into chunks

1 red onion cut into chunks

1 lg green pepper cut into chunks

1 lg red pepper cut into chunks

¼ cup beef or chicken stock

Marinade:

¼ cup soy sauce

4 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp corn starch

½ tbsp Adobo (optional)

½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

Mix marinade ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Place steak in marinade and stir to coat meat. Set aside and let stand for 10 – 15 minutes. Reserve any marinade not absorbed by the meat.

Heat vegetable oil in a wok or large skillet over medium high heat. Brown meat in batches. Drain on paper towels and set aside. Once all of the meat is browned, pour off all but 1 tbsp of oil (if necessary, add a little oil). Add onions and peppers to the wok along with seasonings. Stir then cook for 1 – 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, steak, beef stock and any remaining marinade. Stir to mix. Reduce heat to medium and let simmer for 5 – 10minutes stirring occasionally. Serve over rice.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Oxtail Stew

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, , , , , , ,

IMG_2957_1

My southern roots are showing. Oxtail Stew is one of those southern dishes that most folks up north don’t really know about. Surprisingly, more and more people are coming into the fold and are enjoying oxtails in various recipes. Historically, oxtails were considered a poor man’s dish since it was a cheaper cut of meat. Still, all across the world this cheaper cut of meat was also considered a delicacy. Oxtails were and are used in stews, soups and special sauces. Today, oxtails are no longer a cheap cut of meat. To the contrary. Oxtails are a little more expensive and can be found among the best choice cuts of meat at any grocery store that carries a variety of meats.

IMG_2982_1

Because my mom is both southern and an amateur chef by profession it meant growing up we often had meals that included every part of an animal’s body. I can honestly say my mom can take any animal on the planet and prepare it so that it smells heavenly. I would also say that same animal probably tastes absolutely delicious but I draw the line at eating certain things regardless of how good it smells. Needless to say, the squirrel, rabbit, turtle and sweet bread dishes my mom made did not touch my lips but boy they sure smelled good cooking.

IMG_3016_1

Back to Oxtail Stew. I was talking to my mom about recipes recently and she told me she had made some oxtails. I started thinking of how good her oxtails in onions and gravy were and how much I missed having them. I decided I should try making my own Oxtail Stew for the blog and create a new memory for my family. I was shocked when I got to the grocers and saw the price on the few packages of oxtail I found next to the Delmonico steaks. Since I had committed myself to making an Oxtail Stew I did a Mary Tyler Moore move and rolled my eyes, shook my head and tossed the oxtails into my shopping cart.

IMG_3003_1

Oxtail Stew is one of those meals you eat with two types of utensils. A fork and fingers. You can use the fork to pull pieces of meat off of the bone then pick up the bone and suck all of those delicious juices and those tiny remaining pieces from the bone. For those of you who eat fried chicken with a knife and fork you would not understand what I mean. Just like most of us use our God given fingers to pick up chicken and eat it off the bone you need to do the same with oxtails. If you don’t, you will miss out on some serious flavors and good eating!

IMG_3020_1

Oxtail Stew

Ingredients:
2 pkgs of oxtails
2 carrots chopped
2 scallions chopped (including green part)
1 large onion chopped
1 garlic clove chopped
1 bay leaf
1 small can tomato paste
2 cups water
1cup beef stock
4 tbsp frying olive oil or vegetable oil
1 tbsp salt
½ tbsp black pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp ginger (ground or fresh minced)
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
¼ tsp nutmeg

Season oxtails with all seasonings. Place in a plastic zip lock bag and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.

Heat oil in a dutch oven over medium high heat. Brown oxtails on all sides then place oxtails in a pressure cooker with ½ of the diced onions and 2 cups of water. Cook oxtails for approximately 45 minutes. Let pressure cooker cool (run cold water over the top of the pressure cooker to cool faster. Check out handling instructions.). Strain beef stock from pressure cooker and reserve 2 cups.

Saute remaining onions, scallions and carrots in the dutch oven over medium heat until slightly softened and onions are translucent. Reduce heat to medium then add garlic and stir for 1 minute. Do not let the garlic burn. Add tomato paste, reserved beef stock and 1 cup of beef stock. Whisk together. Add oxtails and bay leaf. Cover and let simmer for 2 ½ hours stirring occasionally. Add additional salt to taste. Serve with rice.

 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin