Beef Broccoli

Ingredients

2 tablespoons minced garlic

4 teaspoons grated ginger

4 teaspoons Chinese black vinegar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

3 teaspoons hoisin sauce

3 teaspoons orange blossom honey

4 tablespoons peanut oil, divided

2 pounds beef flap steak, thinly sliced across the grain*
4 tablespoons cornstarch
2 large heads broccoli, cut into florets and blanched

1 1/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes

Steamed white rice, for serving

(I also added sliced carrots and 1/4 cup orange juice to mine)

Directions
Combine the garlic, ginger, vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce and honey. Mix well and set aside until ready to use. Preheat a wok or a large skillet. Once it has reached a medium heat, add 1/2 of the peanut oil. Dredge the beef in the cornstarch, lightly shake off any excess cornstarch and add 1/2 of the beef to the pan. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1/2 of the broccoli to the pan and shake frequently.


Add 1/2 of the sauce and stir to evenly coat the beef and broccoli. Cook until the sauce thickens about 5 minutes. Repeat the process with the other half of the ingredients. Serve immediately with steamed white rice.


*It will be easier to slice the beef in thin strips if it has been partially frozen.


Cooked by: Aaron
Recipe provided by: foodnetwork.com




Commentary
Aaron: For my first dish of asian food I wasn't too upset with it. Yes the beef could have been a bit more tender but overall I was satisfied. The flavor of it was good, but I think the hoison sauce was a little different. As for the fried rice I attempted I just need to work on it...It was way to mushy but hey atleast I tried. I give this meal a B + and a D for my rice.


Cristina: I've honestly been dreading putting my commentary on this one! For those of you who know my brother Aaron, he has kind of been declared the "chef" in the family. Whether that is a self proclaimed title or he actually deserves it is debatable, but more on that later. What I do know, is that he prides himself on making amazing meals, and that being said, he is very "close" to his food dishes. In other words, he does not like criticism, even when its constructive. For those of you, who know me, I can be brutally honest sometimes to a fault, so I will do my best to give an honest opinion without causing too much damage to his self-esteem.

I was really excited to bring some asian flavor into the NRW mix. Aaron purchased his first Wok and I could envision several delicious dishes coming out of said Wok. This particular meal was actually pretty good. While I think the meat was a little chewy, that could just be due to the particular cut. The flavors were delicious and I think the the broccoli and carrots were cooked to near perfection. The problem with this meal though, really stemmed back to the fried rice he attempted to make. There is no recipe included here, and that is for good reason...It was not good. I say that with the sincerest hope that his rice has no option but to improve. I at least attempted to eat some of the rice, while Stephanie made little effort to spare Aaron's feelings on his failed attempt at a side dish. He immediately got defensive, as we knew he would, but our criticism was only in an effort to improve his culinary skills. On a scale of 1-10, entree receives an 8, side receives a 2.5.

I hope that I have not reopened old wounds for you Aaron, but in the spirit of full disclosure and in an effort to provide our readers with not only new recipes but also some weekly entertainment, I feel that I must provide my brutally honest opinion and I implore you to do the same! I can take it, I promise!

Stephanie: The meat was very good. I really enjoyed it. I think that the beef could have been a little more tender, but that could also be helped by using thinner slices of beef too. The broccoli and carrots were good with the meat. I really wouldn't change a thing about this recipe.