Stir Fried Beef and Sugar Snap Peas

This is a family favorite - even L & M go back for seconds!

Ingredients:

1 lb Tri-tip
3 Tbs. dry sherry or rice wine

1 Tbs. minced fresh ginger 

2 tsp. soy sauce 

1 ¹⁄₂ tsp. cornstarch 

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 

1 tsp. plus 2 Tbs. peanut oil

2 Tbs. Sriracha 

2 Tbs. hoisin sauce 

1 Tbs. minced garlic (from 3 medium cloves) 

6 oz. sugar snap peas (about 2 cups) 

1 medium bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into ¹⁄₂ x 2-inch strips 

8 medium scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal (about 1 cup)

If you want to serve the stir-fry with rice, start the rice before starting the stir-fry!  This is the part I always forget!!

Freeze Tri-tip for a 20-30 minutes before cutting across the grain in ¹⁄₈th inch-thick strips. Set aside. In a medium bowl mix 1 Tbs. of the sherry, the ginger, garlic, soy sauce, cornstarch, 1 tsp. of the oil, ¹⁄₄ tsp. salt, and ¹⁄₈ tsp. pepper.  Stir until the cornstarch is no longer visible. Add the beef and mix until the beef is lightly coated.

In a small bowl, stir the *Sriracha, hoisin sauce, and the remaining 2 Tbs. of sherry. Heat a wok or large sauté pan over high heat until hot.  Add the beef, spreading it evenly over the bottom and sides of the wok in a single layer. Cook, undisturbed, for 1 minute, letting the beef begin to sear, stir-fry until the beef is lightly browned but not yet cooked through, about 1 minute. Transfer the beef to a plate.

Add the remaining 1 Tbs. oil to the wok and swirl to coat. Add the sugar snap peas, bell pepper, and scallions, sprinkle with ¹⁄₂ tsp. salt, and stir-fry until the snow peas are bright green, about 1 minute. Return the beef with any accumulated juice to the wok. Add the Sriracha sauce mixture by swirling it down and around the sides of the wok.  Stir-fry until the beef is just cooked through and the vegetables are crisp-tender, 30 seconds to 1 minute more. Serve immediately.

Serves 4-6 people.

*2 Tbs of Sriracha makes this dish pretty spicy, to make this kid friendly we add about 1 tsp of Sriracha to the sauce and then add more to our liking on our individual plates.

Adapted from Fine Cooking 117 , pp. 71

May 3, 2012