Pepper Steak Stir Fry

I am a big fan of properly made stir fries. When I was a research assistant in Iowa City, Iowa I used to go and eat lunch at a little family run Chinese diner called Easy Place. It was the real deal. All of the dishes were cooked right after you ordered them in big woks. The vegetables were just cooked and still had crisp left in them. I have a recipe for pepper steak that we like real well. We had it a couple nights ago.

Pepper Steak

3/4 pounds steak of some sort, frozen and just starting to thaw
1 green pepper, diced into large pieces
1 red pepper, diced into large pieces
1 onion, diced into large pieces
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 tomato, halved and cut into wedges
4 oz canned sliced mushrooms

Sauce
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 inch ginger, very finely chopped
1 cup beef broth
2 T soy sauce
1 T corn starch
1 t salt

Most of the work of this is in the preparation. You have to have all the ingredients prepared ahead of time because it only takes a few minutes to cook the entire dish. Combine the sauce ingredients in a bowl. Chop all the vegetables up according to instructions. Next slice the beef into 1/8th inch strips. It helps to have the beef frozen and just starting to thaw. If you try to cut raw beef 1/8th inch thin it is very difficult.

Next heat the steel wok very hot. Put a little peanut oil in the wok and immediately add the beef, stirring constantly. It will take less than a minute to cook the beef fully. When the beef is cooked set it aside in a bowl. Next add the onion, peppers, and celery to the wok and cook briefly, stirring constantly until the vegetables just start to soften. You want them to still be slightly crisp when they are served. When the onions, peppers, and celery just start to soften, add the tomatos and mushrooms and stir until the mushrooms and tomatoes are heated. Return beef to the wok and add the sauce. Stir everything constantly until the sauce thickens up. Serve immediately over rice.