Hello everyone!

I know that I usually bring you decor posts, but today I thought I’d share with you one of my FAVORITE recipes!   It’s so good and so simple and easy that I couldn’t keep it to myself any longer.  I’ve made this many times now, so it’s been plate-tested and approved!

I found this over at MyRecipes.com, and it’s orginally from Cooking Light 2001 (pssst… yes, it’s healthy too!).  The first time I made it, I followed the recipe to a “T”.  Wonderful.  Next time, I added mushrooms.  Delicious.  I’ve cooked it with chicken instead of beef – just as good!  I’ve used other thin cuts of beef instead of flank steak (because my store didn’t have a flank steak or skirt steak available that night) – turned out fabulous.  Really, this recipe can be slightly modified to your tastes and still be delicious, which is a wonderful thing in my book!  But the thing about this recipe that I like the most?  How easy it is.  I’ll give you a tip – save yourself the trouble of making the “paste” from scratch.  Just forget about it – go and buy the Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste:

It is exactly what this recipe is calling for, and is inexpensive (less than $4 for a jar) and readily available in your grocer’s Thai food/International aisle.

Also, keep in mind that this dish cooks quickly, so it’s easier to have all the ingredients ready to go once you start cooking.

So, now that you know the secret, here’s the recipe:

Yield
5 servings (serving size: 3/4 cup)

Ingredients
Drunken Paste: (which you don’t need to make unless you just like using a mortar and pestle… I usually add about a tablespoon or so of the ready-made paste)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
7 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 teaspoons minced bird chile or 2 1/2 teaspoons minced serrano chile
2 teaspoons coarsely chopped galangal or peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon chopped peeled fresh lemongrass
2  kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced, or 1 teaspoon grated lime rind

Stir-fry:
Cooking spray
1 (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch strips
2 cups (1-inch) diagonally cut green beans
1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon sugar  (I like to mix the sugar and next 2 ingredients together and then add all at once)
3 tablespoons Thai fish sauce
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 cup Thai basil leaves (Regular ol’ basil leaves work just fine!!!)

Preparation
To prepare the paste, combine the salt and minced garlic in a mortar and pestle, and pound to form a paste. Add chile, galangal, lemongrass, and lime leaves, one at a time, until each ingredient is incorporated into paste.

To prepare stir-fry, heat a wok or large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add paste, and stir-fry for 30 seconds . Add beef; stir-fry for 3 minutes. Add beans; stir-fry for 1 minute (I usually stir-fry the fresh beans a little longer to soften them up more). Add tomatoes, sugar, fish sauce, and vinegar; stir-fry for 1 minute or so until beef reaches desired degree of doneness. Stir in basil.

(I usually serve this over plain rice, or those birds nest rice noodles – both are really great with it.)

Wine Note: Here’s a great example of a beef dish laced with lots of green flavors – in this case, lemongrass, lime and basil. A Sauvignon Blanc, itself sporting green notes, would pair wonderfully with this dish. Try Jepson Sauvignon Blanc 1999 (Mendocino County, California; $11).

Nutritional Information: Calories:  202 (41% from fat), Fat: 9.2g (sat 3.7g,mono 3.5g,poly 0.5g), Protein:  20.2g, Carbohydrate: 10g, Fiber: 1.4g, Cholesterol: 45mg, Iron: 2.7mg, Sodium: 1100mg, Calcium:  50mg.