Quick Beef and Summer Vegetable Stir Fry

Back to School time means quick weeknight dinners.  This stir fry goes from fridge to table in about 15 minutes, and uses up all those farmer’s market purchases or, if you are a better gardener than me, your garden harvest.

• 1/2 lb. beef (or chicken or pork) cut into small strips, use an inexpensive cut for better flavor
• 1/8 C. soy sauce
• 2 t. sesame oil
• 1/4 mirin, Japanese sweet cooking wine ( I find it in the International Aisle at Safeway)
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 T. freshly grated ginger
• 2 t. cornstarch
• 1 T. canola oil
• 1 sweet yellow onion, sliced
• 1 small eggplant, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 medium zuchini, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 C. red cabbage, sliced thinly
• salt and pepper

Toss the beef strips with the soy sauce, sesame oil, mirin, garlic, ginger, and cornstarch together in a bowl until coated and the cornstarch is dissolved. Let the mixture marinate on the counter for about 10 minutes.  Meanwhile, prep the veggies.  Heat the canola oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat. Add the onions. Stir fry for about two minutes, or until you start to get a few charred spots. The key to a good stir fry is high heat and fast cooking.  Add the rest of the veggies to the pan and continue to stir fry for another two to three minutes. If the veggies are starting to burn, reduce the heat a bit, but not too much- you want frying , not steaming. Add the meat with all of it’s marinade and stir fry until the meat is just cooked, about two minutes, stirring constantly.  The veggies should be coated with the sauce.  Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if you like, or a bit more soy sauce and a splash of mirin.  Serve with rice or noodles.  I buy frozen rice at Trader Joes that heats up in the microwave- it’s a huge time saver and it’s nice and fluffy.