Peppered Beef Stir-fry

I made this for the Cooks Club Challenge over on Taste. This month it has been recipes from the 30 Minute Meals collection. There is still some time left in the month so if you are an Aussie pop on over, make a recipe and post a photo. This month the prize is a copy of the Sydney Seafood School cookbook by Roberta Muir. I am not really big on seafood but I am sure there is someone out there that would love the book.

I am going to admit to being a food magazine snob. When I search for a recipe on Taste I tend to bypass recipes from Super Food Ideas. I have found that so many of them call for a jar of this and/or a packet of that. Some of them really aren't recipes at all as far as I am concerned just combining pre-prepared items. I have found the occasional good one and this Peppered Beef Stir-fry is one of them. I actually had some char siu sauce in the fridge, who know how long it had been there, so it was definitely time to use it up. I would suggest that 1/3 cup is too much though. I think that 1/4 cup would be plenty. I also didn't put the left over marinade in as there was enough still on the meat. I used snow peas, asparagus and spinach for the vegetables and served with noodles. I really enjoyed this. The pepper came through nicely even with the strong flavours from the char siu sauce and soy sauce. It was nice and quick for a mid-week meal. I would definitely make it again. 

Zucchini & Asparagus with Feta, Olive & Harissa Dressing

Now that it is winter and the frosts are here the zucchinis have, of course, stopped producing it is nice not to have to wonder what to do with the new lot of zucchini picked from the garden. The most popular recipe over at Taste for the last few years has been this Zucchini slice. It is a good way to use up some zucchini plus it can be frozen. It is great hot and cold. I also regularly make the zucchini & mushroom crumble I posted about in yesterday's post. However, there still remains a lot of zucchinis left over to use. 

Not too long ago I got my hands on several bunches of asparagus when it was on super special. I had apparently not had enough of the zucchinis over summer as I also bought some of them too. So in need of a way of using them up I turned to the net to find a different way of using them. I came across this recipe over at The Wednesday Chef. I made a few changes to incorporate the asparagus and for my own tastes. I was really please with how it turned out plus it gave me a chance to use some more of the wonderful harissa that I got from ideli.com.au. I will definitely be re-purchasing it when I have finished this jar. This recipe will also be going into the regular use pile.

Zucchini & Asparagus with Feta, Olive & Harissa Dressing 

Ingredients: 

• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp harissa paste
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, finely diced 
• 1 zucchini, sliced into batons
• 1 bunch asparagus, cut into pieces the same size as zucchini
• Handful Kalamata olives, pitted and diced 
• 1/4 crumbled feta
• 1 tbsp parsley, chopped
• 1 tbsp mint, chopped 

 Method:

• Combine lemon zest, juice, harissa, garlic and olive oil in a bowl.
• Steam zucchini and asparagus until cooked to your liking, I prefer it to still have a bit of crunch. 
• Toss the vegetables in the dressing.
• Top with olives and feta and serve. 

 

December 2002 - Asparagus with cherry tomatoes, olives & torn bocconcini

It is supposed to be summer here but with the exception of a couple of hot days it certainly doesn't seem like it. Rain, rain and more rain and if it is not raining then it is overcast. The vegetable garden really doesn't appreciate it. There has just been too much rain and not enough sun. My zucchini is covered in powdery mildew. My tomatoes are full of grubs, although the cherry tomatoes are okay. I have gotten 3 small cucumbers so far but the leaves on it are starting to yellow so I am not sure how much longer it is going to survive. It is so disappointing as everything was looking so good initially. It is still early in the season so I am considering pulling out the zucchini and tomato and planting fresh plants to see if I can still get some decent veg this year. 

Rick Stein's Crisp Chinese roast pork with steamed rice sounded really good. Which is a lovely pork belly recipe where the pork flesh is rubbed with a combination of Sichuan peppercorns, black peppercorns, sea salt flakes, five-spice powder and sugar. Rick does point out the need for a nice layer of fat on the pork so as to produce decent crackling. I have just, tonight, had a lamentable experience with an incredibly lean piece of pork belly. There was barely any fat on it and the crackle, while slightly crunchy, did not do what it was supposed to. The meat turned out dry and stringy. I was really disappointed. Next time I purchase a piece I will make sure to have a bit more of a look at it. I think that my next pork belly recipe will be this easy one from Rick Stein. 

Also marked in this recipe was this wonderful Sweet potato & leek roulade with Xmas stuffing. I couldn't really make it for the blog since I have made it previously. Not only is it a wonderful vegetarian dish for Christmas but it is also a really good side dish at Christmas, or any time really. I highly recommend giving this one a go. 

I have now made the dish from this issue, Asparagus with cherry tomatoes, olives & torn bocconcini, twice this month. The first time was as a side dish where I forgot the bocconcini. I then made it again today as a salad for lunch. It was very good both times. Today, I added some lemon basil in place of the regular basil and added a squeeze of lime juice. This was such an enjoyable and simple dish and worked perfectly as a side dish and as a salad. 

Asparagus with cherry tomatoes, olives & torn bocconcini

Serves 6 (as a side dish)

Ingredients: 

• 700 g green & white asparagus, trimmed (I couldn't get white) 
• 100 ml extra virgin olive oil (I only used a small drizzle) 
• 200 g red & yellow cherry tomatoes, halved (I just used red) 
• 200 g black olives, pitted and halved
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 
• 12 basil leaves, chopped 
• 4 bocconcini, roughly torn

Method: 

• Cook asparagus until just cooked but still firm. The recipes says to boil it, I prefer to saute for 5 minutes or steam. 
• Heat oil in a fry pan over a medium heat. Add tomatoes and cook, tossing until warm. 
• Add olives and warm through. 
• Remove from heat and add garlic, basil and asparagus and toss to combine. 
• Serve as a side dish or with crusty bread as a salad. 

October 2009 - Asparagus & Lemon Risotto

Well, my foot is starting to heal up but it still hurts and makes life difficult. I attempted to use my computer chair in the kitchen so that I could just roll around rather than hobbling. This was initially very successful and made life a lot easier. That was until my butt slid forward in the seat and when I reached for something the chair slipped out from underneath me and I ended up on the floor....ugh. Thankfully I didn't hurt myself any further but I did decided that the rolling chair just wasn't worth it. I have still be using it at the table though but it sits on carpet so it is not as dangerous.

I had on my monthly menu plan to make Neil Perry's Stir-Fried minced chicken with chilli and coriander. While it looks really good I am not actually sure why I chose it. It is very similar to the pork dish that I did a while ago but it is full of coriander. I mean it is even in the title. I know that I have mentioned this before but I loathe fresh coriander and substitute it in any recipe. I normally avoid recipes where it is an integral part of the dish as it can just be too difficult to substitute and if I think that the recipe will be lacking if it is substituted. So, after further reflection I decided not to make this. It was also a case of not having all the ingredients and since I was cooking from this issue only the day after I hurt my foot I wasn't in a position to be going and buying ingredients. 

I did have all the ingredients to make Lizzy Kamenetzky's Asparagus and Lemon Risotto which turned out to be very fortunate indeed. I love risotto and this one was terrific. I even love spending time at the stove stirring it. This was prior to the chair slipping out from under me so I was sitting for the cooking time which made it easier. I used my beautiful Swiss Diamond sauté pan to cook it and it was so simple. It was lovely and creamy. The lemon in  it was wonderfully tangy and really brought out the flavour of the asparagus. I truly believe that lemon and asparagus should always go together. I normally make either a pumpkin risotto or pea & mushroom risotto but this one will go into the mix now when I am looking for something easy to make for dinner. 

March 2009 - Chorizo, Asparagus & Kumara Salad with Green Chilli Dressing

My first choice in the penultimate issue for March was a recipe that I quite clearly remember Maggie Beer making on The Cook and The Chef. It is a Leek & Aubergine (Eggplant) Tarte Tatin and it looks so good. I was keen to make it with my own home grown eggplants. I did manage to harvest some from them this year. Although I accidentally planted the finger eggplants instead of the regular kind. The plants were loaded with little ones but I guess that I should have thinned them out because it all got too heavy and the branches broke off and that was the end of the eggplants. I would have bought an eggplant but on the day I went looking the were all a bit overripe, soft and sad looking.

I then planned on making the cover recipe, Thai Salmon Noodle Salad by Jill Dupleix. Salmon is one variety of fish that I do quite like. However the only portions of salmon that were available were very large so I decided that I would leave it for another day when I could get something a bit smaller (and therefore cheaper). At the same time as deciding to make the Thai Salmon Noodle Salad I also chose another salad recipe to make for a nice weekend lunch. So I ended up making Chorizo, Asparagus & Kumara Salad with Green Chilli Dressing by Tom Kime. I had most of the ingredients already. I almost always have chorizo in the fridge as it comes in so handy and is very tasty. I also keep kumara (or sweet potato) on hand as I just love it both roasted and mashed. It is very nice roasted with a balsamic and sweet chilli glaze. I didn't have any green chillis but had some red chillis so I used them instead. I didn't use as much as suggested in the recipe, next time I will. It was so good that I will definitely be making it again.

Chorizo, Asparagus & Kumara Salad with Green Chilli Dressing

Ingredients:

• 2 kumara, peeled, cut into 3 cm chunks
• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 bunch asparagus, trimmed, cut into 3 cm lengths
• Juice 1/2 lemon
• 2 chorizo sausages, halved lengthways, sliced on an angle
• 2 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1/2 c chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 c rocket, roughly chopped (I used salad mix)
  

Green Chilli dressing:

• 2 green chillis, seeded, finely sliced
  
• Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 tsp caster sugar
• 1/4 c (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil (I would recommend using less, it was quite oily)
  

Method:

• Mix all the ingredients for the dressing and then set aside until required.
  
• Mix kumara and half the oil, season and bake in a 200 C oven until cooked, approximately 25 - 30 minutes.
  
• Heat the rest of the oil in a pan and quickly fry asparagus until lightly golden, season and add lemon juice then remove to a bowl.
  
• Fry chorizo in the pan until browned and then drain.
  
• Cool kumara slightly and then add all salad ingredients to the bowl with the asparagus.
  
• Add dressing, toss quickly and serve.