Pepper Steak & Fried Rice
This post was sponsored by Ling Ling, all opinions expressed in my post are my own.
Did you know there’s one day a year where you don’t have to wash your hair or sweep the floor? And to prepare for it you get to buy new shoes, then have a week long party! That’s my kind of holiday! The occasion is Chinese New Year, and this year, the starting date is Friday, February 16.
As many of you know, we added to our family in October of 2017 when we adopted ten-year-old “Scout” from Chengdu, China. It’s important to us to help him remember and stay connected to the culture of his birth country, which means we will be celebrating Chinese New Year together for the first time. There are lots of fun traditions associated with the holiday and the Spring Festival that goes with it, but the thing Scout is most interested in is food!
Traditional Chinese New Year foods are chosen in the hopes that they will bring about luck and prosperity for the coming year. Two of the things commonly eaten are noodles, which are associated with happiness and longevity, and dumplings, which are associated with wealth. Tangerines and oranges are also popular as they’re thought to symbolize wealth and fullness.
This year, we plan on starting off the lunar new year right with some help from Ling Ling. We have been fans of Ling Ling Fried Rice for quite a while now, especially the Chinese-Style Vegetable & Yakiniku Beef varieties. Scout even likes eating it for breakfast! In addition to that, Ling Ling makes several entrees that are perfect for Chinese New Year. There are two traditional Asian varieties of noodles to choose from: Drunken Noodles and Yakisoba Noodles. There are also potstickers made with chicken or pork combined with vegetables in an authentic dumpling wrapper, along with a signature dipping sauce. Both are incredibly easy to prepare, which is great since I’m not much of a chef, and they have the traditional Asian flavors Scout knows and loves.
Scout’s absolute favorite dinner, Pepper Steak, is something we’ll definitely be enjoying during the holiday too. When we first started exploring Asian meals, I was really intimidated, but this Pepper Steak is very simple to make and doesn’t require anything you can’t find in your regular grocery store. It has quickly become a favorite in our house. Here’s the easy recipe so you can try it yourself:
Pepper Steak
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs top round steak
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup water
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 medium onion
- 10 grape or cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 T cornstarch
- 3 tsp sugar
- 2 T soy sauce
- 3 tsp baking soda
Instructions
- Trim fat from steak and cut into bite-size pieces, cutting against the grain.
- Place meat in a bowl, add 3 tsp baking soda {1 tsp per half-pound} and stir to coat the meat completely. This process is to tenderize the steak, and it works wonderfully.
- Allow meat to sit for 15 minutes, then rinse off baking soda.
- Heat oil in a large wok or skillet.
- Add tenderized meat and cook, turning frequently until brown {about 5 minutes}.
- Chop onion into large slices and add onion, water, garlic salt, and ginger to the skillet. Heat until boiling.
- Cover and simmer 25-30 minutes.
- Cut peppers into bite-sized pieces. Add to skillet during the last 5 minutes of simmering.
- Blend cornstarch, sugar, and soy sauce. Stir into meat mixture.
- Cook, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens and boils.
- Slice tomatoes in half and add to skillet. Heat about 2 minutes.
- Serve over rice.
This recipe pairs perfectly with Ling Ling Yakiniku Beef Fried Rice. The rice has red peppers, yellow carrots, green beans, and green onion mixed in, along with beef marinated in a ginger-soy sauce.
If you’re looking for a way to bring authentic Asian flavors into your own kitchen, be sure to check out the Ling Ling website and use the store locator to find these products near you!
For more ideas you can use to celebrate and ring in the “Year of the Dog”, check out our DIY Decoration, 10 Chinese New Year Craft Ideas, and learn how to write the Chinese character for “dog”.
Gong Xi Fa Cai!
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