Pepper Beef

This quick entrée is equally tasty with just one type of bell pepper.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup beef mixture and 3/4 cup rice)

Ingredients

• 3/4  pound  flank steak, trimmed
• 2  tablespoons  low-sodium soy sauce
• 1  tablespoon  Shaoxing (Chinese rice wine), dry sherry, or sake
• 1  teaspoon  sugar
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 2  tablespoons  canola oil, divided
• 1  cup  vertically sliced yellow onion
• 1 1/2  tablespoons  minced garlic
• 1  cup  thinly sliced red bell pepper strips (about 1 medium)
• 1  cup  thinly sliced green bell pepper strips (about 1 medium)
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 3  cups  hot cooked short-grain rice

Preparation

1. Cut steak across grain into 1/4-inch slices; cut slices into 1/2-inch-wide strips. Cut strips into 3-inch-long pieces. Combine steak pieces, soy sauce, wine, sugar, and black pepper.

2. Heat a 14-inch wok over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to wok, swirling to coat. Add onion and garlic to wok; stir-fry 30 seconds or until onion begins to brown. Add red and green bell peppers to wok; stir-fry 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Spoon bell pepper mixture into a large bowl.

3. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons oil to wok, swirling to coat. Add half of steak mixture to wok; stir-fry 1 minute or until browned. Add cooked steak mixture to bell pepper mixture. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil and remaining steak mixture. Return steak mixture to wok; sprinkle with salt. Stir-fry 1 minute or just until heated. Serve over rice.

Wine note: When it comes to wine, this simple beef recipe needs care because green bell peppers can make many red wines taste green and weedy, while soy sauce can make reds taste hollow. So choose a wine with a lot of fruitiness and berry flavors. A great choice is traditional Beaujolais—especially one of the cru Beaujolais such as Moulin-à-Vent. The Georges duBoeuf Beaujolais Moulin-à-Vent (Flower Label) 2006 from Burgundy, France, is $14. —Karen MacNeil

Nutritional Information

Calories:

422 (27% from fat)

Fat:

12.5g (sat 2.4g,mono 5.9g,poly 2.4g)

Protein:

23.2g

Carbohydrate:

50.6g

Fiber:

3.6g

Cholesterol:

28mg

Iron:

3.9mg

Sodium:

613mg

Calcium:

40mg