Easy “Chinese” Beef and Broccoli

You can tell this is my dinner plate. Nothing is touching. Lots of room for possible run-off!

We love Chinese food at our house, and every once in a great while we splurge and get some takeout. In the meantime though, when we can’t do that, I try to find Chinese food-like recipes to make at home. I’m also always looking for new things to do with stew meat, which is one of the staples on our shopping list.

A couple of years ago I found this recipe online, on About.com when I searched for ways to use stew meat.

Normally I serve this over white rice, and I actually do put mine on top of the white rice, believe it or not. But, every so often we try to create our own version of Chinese Fried Rice, and this was one of those times. I used the Instant Brown Rice from Aldis with their frozen peas and I cooked the rice in the microwave first, as I normally would. Then I sauteed it with olive oil and soy sauce and the peas in a large frying pan. It came out so well! I thought we were out of eggs, or I would’ve scrambled some in as well. Turns out, we weren’t, and I could’ve done it after all.

Here’s the recipe as it was on About.com with my modifications in there too.

I mix the gravy mix right in the 2c. measuring cup.

INGREDIENTS

2 to 3 cups leftover steak thinly sliced into 1″ strips (aka stew meat in my house)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups fresh broccoli florets (or 1 16 ounce bag frozen florets)
1 package dry brown gravy mix (I use two)
1 cup water (I use 2 cups because I use two packs of gravy mix)
pepper to taste

I add in a package of fresh sliced mushrooms if I have them.

Cooked white rice or Chinese Noodles (I do rice.)

DIRECTIONS

Another one pan meal!

Heat oil in large frying pan over med. high heat. Add sliced steak strips (stew meat) and saute until hot, about three minutes (longer if frozen as mine always is.) Add broccoli (uncooked) and mushrooms if you choose to use them, and mix.

In a small bowl stir together the gravy mix, water and pepper (I never use pepper.) Add to the broccoli and beef in the pan.

Heat to a boil, stirring occasionally.

Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer about 10 minutes.

Serve over rice or noodles.
Makes 4-5 servings

Enjoy!

a look at the fried rice

Tags: Aldi's, beef and broccoli recipes, chinese beef and broccoli, dinner, eating on a budget, fried rice, Jennifer L. Cowart, recipes, shopping on a budget