Healthy Meal with Kid Appeal Award: Steamy Kitchen’s Chinese Beef Broccoli

by Liz on March 15th, 2010

I used to spend a lot of time reading food magazines, but thanks to the explosion of thousands of amazing food blogs, my attention has turned to the web. A few months back, Diana from Dianasaur Dishes was running a giveaway on her blog for The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Asian Recipes Simple Enough for Tonight’s Dinner, written by fellow food blogger and social media diva, Jaden Hair (Jaden just launched a new website called Food Blog Forum, so be sure to check it out). Lucky for me, I won the giveaway! This past weekend it rained nonstop in the Boston area (a la Noah’s Ark), so I finally had time to sit down and read through the book.

The recipe I decided to make was for Chinese Beef Broccoli. It was easy to prepare, called for ingredients I had on hand, and was packed with lots of broccoli. Best of all, it went over BIG with Simon (Josh and Tim were out at a Boston University hockey game eating heaven knows what, so they missed out on our feast). Since Jaden has two boys of her own, I figured this recipe would be a winner … and I was right.

Given all the great things this recipe has to offer and the fact that Simon ate every last bite of broccoli on his plate, Janice and I are honoring  Jaden from Steamy Kitchen with our Healthy Meal with Kid Appeal Award! Read on for the recipe …

Chinese Beef Broccoli

From The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook (with a few tiny tweaks)

Here’s how Jaden describes this dish: “I can’t remember the last time I went to a restaurant and ordered Broccoli Beef. Love the dish, but there’s nothing I detest more than goopy brown sauce that normally drags this dish down. I want my broccoli to be tender-crisp and taste like broccoli, not just covered in thick sauce. My tip is to steam the broccoli separate and to use a minimal amount of cornstarch (it’s only in the steak marinade).”

  • 1 ½ teaspoons soy sauce (I used lite soy sauce)
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • ½ teaspoon cooking oil (I used canola oil)
  • Freshly ground black pepper to season the beef
  • 1 pound top sirloin or flank steak, thinly sliced across the grain into 1/8th-inch-thick strips
  • 3 tablespoons oyster sauce (I used an MSG-free oyster sauce)
  • 2 teaspoons Chinese rice wine (or dry sherry)
  • 2 teaspoons Chinese black vinegar (or balsamic vinegar)
  • 1 ½ pounds broccoli, cut into bite-size florets
  • 1 tablespoon high-heat cooking oil (I used canola oil)
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic

1. In a bowl, combine the soy sauce, cornstarch, cooking oil, and pepper for the beef marinade. Add the beef and let marinade for 10 minutes at room temperature.

2. In a small bowl, mix together the oyster sauce, rice wine, and vinegar for the stir-fry sauce.

3. In a wok or large sauté pan, add 1 inch of water and bring to a boil. Add the broccoli and cover to steam for 3 minutes. The broccoli should be bright green, crisp tender, and you should be able to pierce the stem with a fork. Drain and set aside.

4. Discard the water in the pan and dry the pan well. Set the pan over high heat and when hot, add the high-heat cooking oil and swirl to coat. Add the garlic and fry for 15 to 30 seconds, until fragrant. Add the steak strips, keeping them in one layer and fry 30 seconds. Flip the strips and fry the other side.

5. Pour in the stir-fry sauce and stir to combine. Simmer until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon, about 30 seconds. Add the cooked broccoli back into the pan and toss to coat well.  Jaden recommends serving over steamed Jasmine rice.

Print Recipe

Here are a few additional cooking notes from MY steamy kitchen:

> Jaden suggested replacing the meat with “meaty” shitake mushrooms for a vegetarian option. I decided to make the dish with 3/4 pound flank steak and 1/4 pound quartered shitake mushrooms, and I steamed the mushrooms with the broccoli.
> I served the stir-fry with brown rice, and I cheated by using the frozen Trader Joe’s variety!
> This recipe can serve a family of four comfortably. I think it would be great with some sliced pears or orange slices on the side.
> I couldn’t find Chinese rice vinegar or Chinese rice wine, so I used the alternative ingredients Jaden called for in the recipe.

I liked this recipe so much that I definitely plan to make it again. Thanks Jaden!

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4 Comments | Filed Under Awards, Beef, Dinner, Vegetables 

Magic Meatloaf and a Conversation with a Local Beef & Dairy Farmer

by The Meal Makeover Moms on October 11th, 2009

lucinda-with-cow-farm-june-09Lucinda Williams is a mother of four children, ages 14 to 23, and a Massachusetts beef and dairy farmer. Together with her husband Darryl, they run the Luther Belden Farm in Hatfield, MA. This is no ordinary farm. It’s been in her husband’s family since 1661, and her children are the 13th generation to work the land. Today, they milk 100 cows twice a day, keep a herd of 200, and grow hay, corn and alfalfa to feed their livestock.

 In a recent conversation with folks at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (one of our former blog sponsors), we were surprised to learn that 97% of beef cattle farms are family farms. We caught up with Lucinda (who is also Chair of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board) to hear more about that and to get her family’s favorite recipe from the ranch.

Q: We often hear about the decline of the family farm. What changes have you seen since you first started farming in terms of new challenges and the increased emphasis on the environment and sustainability?

A: The family farm is alive and well. We strive to provide safe, high-quality beef for consumers at an affordable price while sustaining and improving resources under our care. Beef production methods have evolved over the years to achieve this goal, resulting in new management protocols and technologies that help producers meet consumer demand.

lucindawilliamsfamily

Q: Do your children help out on the farm? If so, what do they like to do?

A: Absolutely!  During the school year, our kids are busy with sports, music, and drama, as well as church and community activities, so their available hours to help on the farm are somewhat limited.  Nevertheless, they still have daily chores such as feeding the calves and additional weekend work as needed.  This summer, we milked our cows three times a day — 4:00am, noon, and 8:00pm and all of us helped out.  This summer, our 21-year old son, Jackson, worked on the farm mowing, raking, baling hay, tending to the cows, fixing fences, and the myriad other jobs that go along with running a dairy farm.

Q: What’s your family’s favorite recipe?

Magic Meatloaf (from the kitchen of Lucinda Williams)

It cooks like magic in the slow cooker and disappears like magic, too! I use a 6-quart slow cooker.

  • 3 pounds lean ground beef
  • 1 ½ cups quick-cooking oats
  • 2 large eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup barbeque sauce
  • 1 tablespoon dried minced onion
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 cup shredded lowfat Cabot cheddar cheese

1. In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, oats, eggs, barbeque sauce, minced onion, and Worcestershire sauce.  Mix until all the ingredients are combined.

2. Fold a sheet of aluminum foil in half and place in the bottom of your slow cooker (allow the foil to extend up the sides of the slow cooker). Spray the foil and the exposed bottom of the slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.

3. Form half of the meat mixture into an oval or rectangle and place on top of the foil (leave half an inch to an inch of space between the meatloaf the sides of the slow cooker).  Sprinkle the cheese over the meat. Add the rest of the meatloaf mixture on top of the cheese. Seal the “seam” by pinching the mixture with your fingers.  Cook on low 4 to 5 hours.

4. Remove the meat from the cooker by carefully pulling up the sides of the aluminum foil. Transfer the meatloaf to a plate or platter. Slice and serve.

We agree with Lucinda that this recipe disappears like magic! Liz made it the other day (she cut the recipe in half and it worked great), and it was a big hit with the kids. The half recipe yielded about 8 servings.  Post your favorite meatloaf recipe here!

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4 Comments | Filed Under Beef, Dinner, SlowCooker 

Podcast 69: Slow Cooker Favorites

by The Meal Makeover Moms on August 25th, 2009

It’s been way too hot outside these past few weeks to turn on our ovens, so we decided to devote our weekly Cooking with the Moms podcast show to the slow cooker. Our first recipe for Spinach Goo was recently featured on our blog, so be sure to check it out.  Our second recipe is for Sweet & Hearty Beef Stew and literally takes just five minutes to prepare. Our slow cooker philosophy to “dump and go” definitely applies to this recipe!

sweetheartybeefstew

Sweet & Hearty Beef Stew
Makes 6 Servings

  • 8 ounces presliced mushrooms
  • 2 pounds lean stew meat
  • One 16-ounce bag baby carrots
  • One 8-ounce can tomato sauce
  • 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
  • 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 3 tablespoons cold water
  • 6 whole wheat rolls

1.  Place the mushrooms in the bottom of a slow cooker. Top with the stew meat and carrots.  Pour the tomato sauce, maple syrup, and vinegar over the top and sprinkle with the salt.  Cover and cook on low for 6 to 7 hours.

2.  When done, whisk the cornstarch and water together in a small bowl until well blended; stir into the beef mixture along with the peas.  Allow the mixture to thicken, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve with the whole wheat rolls.

Nutrition Information per Serving:  340 calories, 11g fat (4g saturated), 520mg sodium, 29g carbohydrate, 4g fiber, 32g protein, 220% vitamin A, 20% vitamin C, 30% iron

During the show, we also had an opportunity to dish about some very sensible slow cooker advice.  We adapted the following tips from A Year of Slow Cooking, a blog written by Stephanie, who, by the way, is coming out with a new cookbook called, Make it Fast, Make it Slow:

What size slow cooker should I buy? It depends on what you are interested in cooking, and your family size. Slow cookers work the best when they are 2/3 to 3/4 of the way full. The recipe times are for this amount of food, so if your pot isn’t full enough, the food will cook faster and might burn. If it’s a bit too full, your food will take longer to cook than the suggested cooking times.

> For a family of 2 to 3, buy a 2- to 4-quart slow cooker
> For a family of 3 to 5, buy a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker
> For a large family, or for entertaining groups of people, opt for a 7- to 8-quart slow cooker

spinach-casserole

What if I only have a huge slow cooker?  Can I still make recipes that call for a smaller size? Yes. Simply insert an oven-safe dish (Pyrex, Corningware, etc.) into your large stoneware, and load the ingredients into the dish. This will create a smaller cooking vessel inside of your slow cooker. Then cover and cook like normal. It will take a bit longer for the dish inside to get up to temperature, but your food will cook just fine.

Another option if you have a 6-quart slow cooker but are making a recipe that calls for a 4-quart is to put the ingredients into your slow cooker, then put a layer of foil or parchment paper on top of the food to help trap in the steam and moisture. Then cover and cook like normal.

If you have a favorite slow cooker recipe you’d like to share, please post it here on our blog. We’re always looking for new ideas and would love to hear from you.

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9 Comments | Filed Under Beef, Podcast, Vegetarian 

Grilling Gift Basket Winner

by The Meal Makeover Moms on July 31st, 2009

For our grilling gift basket giveaway, we had nearly 100 entries! We’d like to thank everyone for entering and for sharing their delicious grilling tips and ideas.  The winner of our $100 gift certificate for Omaha Steaks, a copy of The Healthy Beef Cookbook and assorted grilling tools, is Lorraine A., a mom of 2 from Metuchen, NJ. Congratulations!

Below, are some of the great grilling suggestions we received. For even more inspiration, check out the comments on our July 16 post.

 Ann:  Besides all kinds of veggies on the grill, one other thing we really like to cook on the grill is pizza. This was something we used to only make in the cooler months since it heats up the kitchen. No problem making this on the grill. You just have to roll out the dough before putting it on the grill, brush with olive oil, then flip after a couple minutes, and brush a little more olive oil on and put all your toppings on. Only thing is to make sure that whatever you put on will heat up in only a few minutes….making pizza on the grill is a lot faster than in the oven. We like a soft cheese like goat or fresh mozzarella with basil from the garden.

Christina from the blog, Jacobs Heart Surgery:  To keep well-done hamburgers moist, mix 2 slices of bread with enough milk to make a thick paste. Add to ground beef and seasonings and make into patties. Also we use a grilling basket for veggies. Just add some olive oil and Italian seasoning to your favorite veggies — we love red & green bell peppers, red onions, zucchini and mushrooms. Yum!

Katie H: When you grill vegetables, make extra for another meal. The leftovers are great when tossed with some crumbled feta and cold brown rice, quinoa, or couscous and dressed with vinaigrette for a quick but filling salad. We like red onion slices, zucchini, eggplant, bell peppers and asparagus.

Diane C:  My family loves Packet Potatoes. I slice up potatoes — washed but not skinned along with some onion. Next, I mix with canola oil and Tastefully Simple seasoned salt. Then I take several sheets of foil, spray with Pam and divide the potatoes and onions among them. I wrap them up, leaving some room at the top, but tightly seal. Pop on the grill for about 20 to 25 minutes, turning several times. Delish!

Lauren M from the blog, Matrale Madness:  Our favorite London broil grill marinade is made with the following:  1/3 cup olive oil, 2 tablespoons ketchup, 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce, 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, and 2 cloves of grated garlic.  The trick to amazing London broil is to grill on high heat for 5 minutes each side (only flip it once) and then take it off the grill and put in dish you are going to cut it on and cover with foil for 10 minutes before slicing!

Stay tuned for our next giveaway which we’ll be announcing soon.

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1 Comment | Filed Under Beef, Dinner, Giveaways 
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