Recipe #7 - Mexican Beef Stir Fry

I'm not a huge fan of cooking beef at home (other than roasts and hamburger meat) only because I find that it's hard for it to be perfect, and it matters to me how it comes out. I'd rather not cook "ok" beef - I'd rather do without and leave it up to the professionals to get it right. Maybe I just need to keep working on it... :)

This recipe was good, and easy, but won't be at the front of the line when I'm ready to start repeating some of these new recipes I've found this year. It's been about 10 days since I actually tried this recipe, and I can't remember for sure exactly what kind of beef I used. I'm thinking I might not have used the best variety, only because of the outcome. More to come on that later, though.

Ingredients:
*1 pound of beef flank steak
*2 tblsp of vegetable oil
*1 tsp ground cumin
*1 tsp garlic salt
*1 tsp dried oregano leaves
*1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
*1 medium onion, chopped
*1 to 2 jalapenos, seeded and cut into slivers

Cut flank steak diagonally across the grain into 1/8 inch thick slices. Combine the oil, cumin, salt and oregano in a small bowl. Put 1 tablespoon of the mixture into a frying pan over medium-high heat, until hot. Add the vegetables and stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes, until tender crisp. Remove from pan. Pour remaining oil mixture into frying pan, and stir fry the beef (half at a time) for 1 to 2 minutes. Once all of the meat is cooked, add vegetables back to pan and heat thoroughly.

I used some flank steak (I think...) that was pre-sliced. I wonder if it made it less tender, because it was quite chewy (in my opinion). If it wasn't that, then I over cooked it. 1 to 2 minutes to cook the beef didn't seem like very long, and it was still way too red for my preference. It's very possible that I could have overcooked it, but we'll know for sure next time once I buy the meat specifically stated in the recipe.

I served the stir fry over tortillas, to give it a fajita twist. The flavor of the veggies and meat were wonderful! I just didn't appreciate the chewiness. As a side, I added some pinto beans that simmered with fresh jalapeno pepper chopped up in them. Meh... Note to self - I don't think I let them simmer long enough...



By the way, this recipe came from Great American Favorite Brand Name Cookbook, Collector's Edition. I haven't tried too many things from this book yet - it's a massive cookbook and is a little overwhelming!! :)

TTFN!