Fried Rice with Beef

I have had such an incredibly lazy week, cooking wise. Usually at least once a week I try to make something that requires at least a little bit of brain power, but this week I did the bare minimum.

I feel quite guilty saying that I’m tired (ok exhausted) and lazy when most of my friends are moms who work all day and then come home to kids, cooking and laundry. I really can’t imagine that I would ever cook if I wasn’t a stay-at-home-mom. I would seriously pick up a Rotisserie chicken and salad from the supermarket every night, so for those of you who are cooking their families healthy meals every night after a long day at work, hats off to you!

If you have left over rice or meat, this is the PERFECT meal for a busy weeknight. Just stir-fry with some onions/scallions (spring onions), garlic, ginger and vegetables and you have a filling and satisfying meal. And the beautiful thing is that you can use beef, pork, chicken, even prawns. Anything goes and the same goes for the range of veg you can add. Anything from peas, corn, broccoli and beans to sugar snap peas, spinach, zucchini and butternut will work. And if you don’t have leftovers, make your life a bit easier and make the rice in the microwave oven the morning before work and leave it until night time when you need to make the stir-fry. Buy a Rotisserie chicken on the way home and shred it into the rice and veg, easy peasy!

Serves 4

• 500g beef strips / steak strips (I used rump which I sliced into strips)
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1tsp crushed ginger
• 1tsp crushed garlic
• 2tsp honey

• oil for frying
• 1 cup spring onions / scallions, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1tsp crushed ginger
• 3 cups vegetables of your choice, sliced into strips
• 1 red chilli, finely chopped (optional)
• 3 cups cooked rice
• 2tbsn soy sauce
• 2tbsn sweet chilli sauce
• 2tbsn lime / lemon juice
• fresh coriander / parsley to serve

1. Combine the beef with the soy sauce, ginger, garlic and honey. Allow to marinate for 5 minutes then stir fry in a wok for 5-7 minutes until cooked. Remove from the pan and set aside.
2. Allow the wok to get hot and fry the spring onions, garlic and ginger until fragrant (about 1 minute), add the vegetables and chilli (if using) and stir fry for 5-7 minutes until they are cooked but still firm.
3. Add the rice, soy sauce, sweet chilli sauce and lime juice and stir fry for another minute before adding the beef back in.
4. Stir fry the rice and beef together for a minute and serve with fresh coriander/parsley and an extra squeeze of lime juice.