Simple Stir Fry for Dinner

Sephardic, Mediterranean food, and California Cuisine dominate in our home, but every once in a while I crave an Asian inspired stir fry.  So simple, this dish took me 35 minutes to make, once I realized I had the ingredients on hand.

You will need:

2 (12 ounce) Spencer ^[1]steaks, which is what my butcher calls a rib steak with no bone

Grated orange zest from one orange

Juice from 1 orange (I used a Valencia ^[2]juice orange)

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

¼ cup soy sauce, I use low sodium

4 teaspoons grated ginger root

4 minced garlic cloves

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 red bell pepper

1 dark green Poblano pepper ^[3](it has a little bite)

3 cups sliced Shitake ^[4] mushrooms

1 bunch asparagus

4 tablespoons peanut or safflower oil

¾ cup roasted whole cashews

¼ cup toasted sesame seeds ^[5]

^[6]Slice steak against the grain, in thin strips for stir frying. Place steak strips in a large bowl to marinate.  Add the orange zest, one half orange juice, lime juice, and soy sauce to steak in the bowl. Next, add one half of grated ginger and one half of minced garlic along with two teaspoons sesame oil and brown sugar to meat.  Toss steak to mix all of the flavors and set aside to marinate, while you chop vegetables and cook rice to serve it with.

Wash and dry bell pepper and Poblano chili, then, julienne them, discarding stems and seeds. Set julienne peppers in a large bowl.  Wipe Shitake  caps off with a damp towel. Cut off stems at base with a scissor and then, slice mushrooms into strips and add to the bowl with peppers.  Wash and dry asparagus and discard the tough base ends.  Slice asparagus into one inch lengths.  Add asparagus to pepper bowl.

^[7]Heat a large wok or other large pan over highest heat until extremely hot. Add two tablespoons of oil, swish, and immediately add marinated steak to pan. Let steak sear for a minute before stirring it, and then, let it sear again.  When steak is browned, add the rest of the oil and then add vegetables to the wok. Stir vegetables and steak to blend.  Wait one moment and then, stir in the remaining grated ginger and garlic.  Add the remaining orange juice, and the last two tablespoons of soy sauce.  If the stir fry is very dry add a couple tablespoons of water to create some steam and juice.  Lastly toss in the sesame oil, cashews and toasted sesame seeds.  Turn off heat and serve immediately with sticky Japanese rice or Jasmine rice. ^[8]