Stir-Fry Beef Tenderloin

Do you ever get bored of the dishes you make night after night?  I know I do.  Even though I cook a lot, I still tend to repeat the dishes my family gravitates to until they get boring.  So tonight I decided on stir-fry, a dish I blogged about back in 2010, but thought I'd share it again.

When I make stir-fry I serve it on top of brown rice, raw spinach or some variety of lettuce. Tonight I felt like a plate of veggies so I served it on top of raw spinach. I'm sure this would taste delicious and be healthy over barley, quinoa or any other grain you like -  be creative!

The key when making stir-fry is to mise en place your ingredients, so they're ready when it's time to toss into your wok. Since stir-frying is a quick process, this alleviates any mistakes, and overcooking.

Be sure your flame is high, and use an oil with a high smoke point such as canola, peanut or grapeseed oil. If possible use a heavy flat bottom wok, allowing a larger surface area to come in contact with the heat,  rather than a round-bottom wok.

Stir-fry can be made with beef, chicken, fish or all vegetables, even tofu.  However, this evening I purchased beef tenderloin and used veggies I had on hand to add to the mix. If you're not a fan of the veggies I selected, use those that appeal to you and your family.

Leftovers can be warmed up the next day and wrapped into a tortilla, adding spinach, or your favorite grain, making for a delicious and hearty lunch.

Note: Before preparing this dish be sure to read the directions at least two times, familiarizing yourself with each step.   This dish is simple to prepare.  Mise en Place is key!

Stir-Fry Beef Tenderloin

Ingredients:

1 pound beef tenderloin
1 tablespoon heavy soy sauce
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon rice wine (Mirin)
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1 pound mushrooms (I used baby bellas)
3 whole green onions
4 asparagus spears
baby carrots, large handful
3 tablespoons cooking oil (I use canola)

Seasonings:

3 cloves garlic, minced or 1 1/2 teaspoons jarred roasted garlic
1 tablespoons minced ginger, optional

Sauce:

1/4 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons rice wine (Mirin)
1 tablespon thin soy sauce (I used low sodium soy)
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Mise en Place:

Cut beef into 1/4 inch rectangular slices about 1/2 inch wide and 1 inch long.
In a bowl combine the soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of rice wine, and sesame oil. Blend well and set aside to marinate for at least 15 minutes but no longer than 8 hours, refrigerated. Set aside the remaining 1/4 cup of rice wine.

Trim stems off mushrooms and slice into 1/4 inch pieces. Cut green onion on a diagonal into 1-inch long pieces. Cut the same with the asparagus. Slice baby carrots in half lengthwise. Combine all veggies together on a plate and set aside.

Combine the seasonings if using both and set aside until ready to use. In a separate bowl combine the sauce ingredients and set aside.

Cooking Instructions:

Place the wok over the highest heat. When the wok becomes very hot, add 2 tablespoons of the cooking oil. Roll the oil around the wok and when the oil starts to smoke, add the beef. Stir and toss the beef until it loses its raw exterior color, about 2 minutes. Then slide beef onto a plate and set aside.

Immediately return the wok to the highest heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of cooking oil, and the Seasonings. Stir-fry the Seasonings for about 5 seconds, then add vegetables until they brighten in color. This should only take about 3 minutes.
Just after adding the veggies add the 1/4 cup of rice wine, this will help the veggies to soften more quickly giving them a richer flavor and stir.

Stir the Sauce, and then pour it into the wok. Return the beef to the wok. Stir and toss until all the ingredients are glazed with the sauce and thickened.

Transfer stir-fry immediately to a serving platter. Place on top of spinach, lettuce or grains.

Enjoy!!!

Mise en Place [MEEZ ahn plahs]

Roughly translated, mise en place means “everything in place.” It is the practice where cooks make sure that everything is ready to go before they begin cooking. Everything means everything. It means reading over the recipe at least once, if not more than once. It means having all of the equipment plugged in, tested, and ready to go. It also means laying out all of the needed ingredients while ensuring that the vegetables are sliced, diced, julienned or otherwise cut according to the recipe.

Mise en place saves time and deters disaster

You might be thinking mise en place means lots of focus and deep breaths because it is a lot of work! But in all seriousness, getting everything ready beforehand can really reduce kitchen mishaps. There is no scrambling, digging in the refrigerator, or trying desperately to remember how the food processor bowl fits on the base while food is about to burn on the stove.

Mise en place is especially important when doing things like stir-fry, where the food can burn, or delicate things like making a sauce, which can easily break. All in all, having your mise en place ready can be the difference between disaster and delectable.

Making mise en place work for you

Undoubtedly, delectable is always better than disaster, but there’s just one question left: How ever do you organize it all?

In many cases, chefs use plastic cups. Everything is measured out, placed into a plastic cup, and when it comes time for the ingredient to be added, the ingredient is poured into the skillet or bowl. Chefs often then discard the plastic cup, which is not the most eco-friendly mise en place option to practice.

On the other hand, you can use your own bowls, cups or even ramekins, a much more environmentally-conscious option. You can also check out your local kitchen store, they carry small glass stackable bowls in various sizes that work perfectly for this.

Practicing mise en place

Practicing mise en place is a good idea and one of the ways that restaurant kitchens turn out a lot of food in record time. Take this secret of the restaurant chef home with you and use it to rock your kitchen. Opt to always mise en place and you can make a good kitchen practice even better.

If you find that you're always missing an ingredient once you get started to cook or don't have enough of one, mise en place is your answer. I know you're probably thinking, I can't remember to do this all the time. However, if you can remember to mise en place when you have lots of ingredients in a recipe, then you'll find your recipes will be easier to prepare and your dishes will come out amazingly better - then you'll never forget.

You too can be a great chef in your own kitchen. Just don't forget to Mise en Place!