Italian Beef Stuffed Capsicum

Wednesday Dinner

- Italian Beef Stuffed Capsicum

- Broccoli & Mushrooms 

Leftover Corned Beef & Lentil Soup

Thursday Dinner

- Leftover Corned Beef & Lentil Soup

To make use of the leftover corned beef and about 2L of beef stock, I made a lentil soup.  In a pressure cooker, fry onion, garlic and celery with small amount of oil before adding beef stock, green lentils(2cups, soaked for 30mins) and a bayleaf.  Cook for 15mins under pressure.  Once the pressure is released naturally, add corned beef pieces, green beans and eggs to poach.  Cook on low heat until egg white is set.

It was tasty enough but I realised that I am not a fan of corned beef or maybe beef in general.  I found myself keep pushing the meat to the side and ended up giving some to Hubby but enjoyed the rest of the soup.  It might have been better if the meat was shredded, only for my liking.

Corned Beef

Tuesday Dinner

- Corned Beef

- Veggies

- Wasabi & Sour Cream Sauce

This was my first time ever buying, cooking or eating corned beef.  It was really easy to make which I always love.  Just throw everything (onion, garlic, carrot, celery, cloves, peppercorns, bay leaf, corned beef) in a pressure cooker with plenty of water to cover the meat and turn the heat on.  It was a 1.2 kg piece of meat and I cooked for 30mins after pressurised but I think I could cook a bit longer.  It was fork tender only around the edges.  Served with boiled vegetables and wasabi and sour cream sauce.  I made the sauce too thin but tasted good with corned beef. 

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/9702/corned+beef

Beef Stew

Thursday Dinner

- Beef Stew

Beef blade is usually made into pulled beef in my household but I wanted something different so made a simple but delicious beef stew.  The only special thing about this stew would be that I used red wine infused fruit for stock.  Hubby and I drink red wine in winter and we often infuse fruit in it.  After drinking all the wine, I like to blend the leftover fruit with water and use them in curry or stew.  It always makes a dish extra delicious for some reason.  Stew is so easy and simple to make but I was surprised how tasty it turned out to be.  I only used tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, dijon mustard, oregano and bay leaf.  The meat was fork tender after 15mins in a pressure cooker.

Beef &Tomato Mapo Tofu

Thursday Dinner

- Beef & Tomato Mapo Tofu
- Lemon & Mint Pickled Cabbage
- GBR


Beef & Tomato Mapo Tofu Recipe (Serves 4)

Ingredients

• 500g beef mince
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 eggplant, cubed
• 8 cherry tomatoes
• 400g Tofu, cubed

Seasoning

• 2~3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 10g ginger, grated
• 1Tbsp Tobanjan
• 1 star anise
• 1Tbsp Miso
• 2Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp Sichuan pepper

Method

1. In a frypan, heat oil and fry garlic, ginger, Tobanjan and star anise
2. When flagrant, add beef mince
3. When beef mince is cooked, add onion, eggplant and cherry tomatoes
4. Add a cup of water, Miso and soy sauce and simmer with a lid on
5. When eggplant is almost cooked, add Tofu and continue cooking for 2~3mins
6. Add 1Tbsp arrowroot starch mixed with 1Tbsp water to thicken
7. Stir well, be careful not to break up Tofu too much
8. Sprinkle Sichuan pepper
9. Serve as is, with rice or noodles

Pulled Beef & Tofu Open Omelet

Thursday Dinner

- Pulled Beef and Tofu Open Omelet

There are reasons why I like pulled beef/pork and cook them regularly.  It is easy to make, just throw in a pressure cooker.  It is versatile, I can use leftover to create other dishes in the following days.   And it is low-carb, I know Hubby or I won't gain weight from this.  Pulled pork/beef matche my motto for cooking perfectly, that is why I cook them often.

I would call this dish "Tamagotoji" in Japanese but in English, i guess it would be an open omelet or a frittata.  Start by adding Tofu, eggplant and leftover pulled beef in a shallow casserole or a frypan.  Cook until the eggplant is soft with a lid on.  When the eggplant is cooked, add whisked eggs and put the lid back on.  Cook on low heat until the eggs are set to your liking.  Sprinkle spring onions if you have it.

Yes, it is the third consecutive days of pulled beef but I didn't feel that way.

Low-Carb Pulled Beef Croquette

Wednesday Dinner

- Low-Carb Pulled Beef Croquette
- Sautéed Sauerkraut, Carrot and Celery
- Blaised Mushrooms
- Miso Soup (Tofu/Wakame)

Croquettes are one of the most popular dish in Japanese home cooking.  Many people grow up eating mother's homemade croquettes or the ones we buy hot from a butcher.  I am the latter and am not a big fan of croquettes but I remember the warmth of croquettes (deep-fried on order) in my hand on the way home.

My low-carb croquettes are made with Okara (soy pulp) instead of potatoes because I don't buy potatoes (Recipe below).  Okara by itself is dry and boring but it transforms into to something magical with a touch of psyllium husk.  I think of Okara as almond flour substitute with a lot of moisture.


Low-Carb Pulled Beef Croquette (Makes 6, Serves3-4)

Ingredients

• 135g Okara (soy pulp)
• 300g Leftover pulled beef
• 1tsp Psyllium husk
• 2 handfuls of coconut fine

Method

1. Dry roast coconut fine in a frypan until golden brown
2. Mix all the other ingredients (add water if too dry)
3. Shape into 6 balls
4. Roll in the toasted coconut fine to coat
5. Bake in the oven until warm

Pulled Beef with Lamb Kidney

Tuesday Dinner

- Pulled Beef with Lamb Kidney

- Steamed Broccoli

- Boiled Eggs

Do you own a slow cooker or a pressure cooker?  I don't think there are too many people who own both.  I love my Silit pressure cooker so much that I have no desire for a slow cooker.  

In a pressure cooker, 1kg of pulled beef only needs 20mins of cooking time after pressurised but if I include the time it takes to be pressurised and to be depressurised naturally, it would take at least 40mins.  So I understand completely that some people don't have that 40mins and would suit them to cook 8hrs in a slow cooker and have it ready when they get home.  Having a dinner ready when you get home does sound appealing, too.

1kg of beef blade was cut into 5cm cubes and placed in a pressure cooker with 1cup of water, soy sauce, fish sauce, chilli bean paste (Toubanjan), ginger, garlic, spring onion, onion, lamb kidney(pre-cooked, diced).  Cooked for 20mins after pressurised then depressurised naturally.  I didn't even sear the meat first but turned out delicious.

Remove the beef then shred using two forks.  Reduce the liquid in a pressure cooker then pour on top of the shredded meat.  You could thicken the sauce with tapioca starch but I didn't bother.  Serve with steamed broccoli and boiled eggs.

Moroccan Meatball Tagine

Tuesday Dinner

- Moroccan Meatball Tagine

- Leftover Salad

Although I love claypots, I will never want to own a tagine because it takes up too much space in the kitchen.  I can still make exotic tagine dishes in a shallow casserole, Japanese claypots (Donabe) or even in a frypan as I did last night.

This dish is simply beef meatballs cooked in spiced tomato sauce with poached eggs and I loved the moist meatballs.  I used frozen meatballs from last week when I made scotch eggs.  The seasonings I used for tomato sauce were lemon zest, cinnamon, black olives, paprika, cumin, coriander and cayenne pepper.  

I prefer cooking beef meatballs in a sauce since it tends to be dry when cooked.  I added cooked chickpeas for extra protein as well as to thicken the sauce.  This dish would be great for weekend breakfast or brunch as well.  I suspect other proteins such as chorizo, sausages, bacon would go just as well.

Source:

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1898649/moroccan-meatball-tagine-with-lemon-and-olives

Beef Scotch Eggs

Wednesday Dinner

- Scotch Eggs
- Tofu Salad

I made scotch eggs with minced beef and Okara.  Although the mince mixture was dry and some cracked, I liked the idea of the dish.  Full of protein, another mince recipe and can be eaten cold.  I will make it again, maybe with pork mince.  Seasoned beef mince with cumin, coriander, mint, smoked paprika.  It would be quicker if you made boiled eggs in advance.

Meatballs and Mashed Okara

Monday Dinner

- Beef Meatballs

- Mashed Okara

- Stir-fried Water Spinach (Kang Kong)

- Stir-fried Tomatoes and Eggs  

I always keep homemade meatballs in freezer for emergency backups when I don't have any protein in fridge or when I don't feel like cooking anything.  Yesterday was former.  Throw frozen meatballs in 180˚C oven with veggies (green beans, mushroom and broccoli) and cook for 20mins while preparing side dishes.  I seasoned water spinach with fish sauce and used oyster sauce for tomatoes and eggs.

I made way too much food for 2 people and probably didn't need mashed Okara, but it turned out pretty good (recipe below).  This is a low-carb version of mashed potatoes but could also be rice or noodle substitute for people on low-carb diet.  I also think this has a potential to be made into a low-carb white sauce with more milk or water.  I will definitely be trying that in the near future.


Mashed Okara Recipe (Serves 6)

Ingredients

• 200g Okara
• 200ml Milk
• 50~150ml Water (depending on how wet Okara is)
• 2 Tbsp Psyllium Husk
• 50g Cheese
• 10g Butter
• Salt to taste

Method

1. Add milk and cheese in a pan
2. When cheese is melted, add Okara and psyllium husk and mix well
3. Add water till it achieves consistency of your liking
4. Add butter and salt to taste

Pulled Beef and Tofu Open Omelet

Tuesday Dinner

- Pulled Beef and Tofu Open Omelet

- Zucchini Salad with Pesto

- Japanese-style Chicken Liver with Crackers

What to do with leftover pulled beef?  I usually cook with Tofu to stretch it.   I can make 3-4 servings with just 1-2 servings of meat.  I made super easy open omelet this time.  I had zucchini salad in fridge so I didn't even use a knife last night.  Dinner in 15mins! That's the stuff I like.  For zucchini salad, I just mixed sliced zucchini with pesto and lemon juice.

Open Omelet with Pulled Beef and Tofu Recipe (Serves 4)

Ingredients

• 1~2 servings of leftover pulled beef or any other protein
• 300g Tofu
• 4 eggs
• Soy sauce to taste

Method

1. Heat leftover pulled beef and tofu (scoop large pieces using a spoon) in a fry pan
2. Once bubbling, add beaten eggs then put the lid on
3. Reduce heat and cook till the eggs are set
4. Add a dash of soy sauce or other condiments to taste

Japanese-style Chicken Liver Recipe (Serves 4)

Ingredients

• 250g Chicken liver
• 2Tbsp Soy sauce
• 10g Ginger
• 5g Honey
• 1 small onion, sliced

Method

1. Cut liver into bite-size pieces. Remove white fat.
2. Rinse liver pieces under running water until the water comes out clean
3. Boil liver pieces for 1min
4. Rinse with cold water
5. Heat soy sauce, ginger and honey in a small pan
6. Add prepared liver pieces and place onions on top
7. Cook covered until all the liquid in the pan is reduced

30mins Pulled Beef

Sunday Dinner

- Pulled beef

- Lettuce

- Pickled carrot and cucumber

- Cucumber

I made pulled pork last week for the first time and I loved it for how easy and tasty it was.  So I made pulled beef this week in pressure cooker.  I love my red 4.5L Silit pressure cooker, well worth the investment so far.  Not so spicy but only little bit spicy beef went very well with pickles and crunchy lettuce.  I love it!

Pulled Beef Recipe (Serves 6)

Ingredients

• 1kg Beef (chuck)
• 4Tbsp Tomato sauce
• 1Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup of Water
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Cayenne pepper to taste

Method

1. Add all the ingredients except beef into a pressure cooker and turn the heat on 
2. Cut beef into large chunks (about 7cm cubes)
3. Once boiled, add beef chunks to the pressure cooker
4. Turn the beef chunks once then put the lid on
5. Cook for 20mins after pressurised
6. Once depressurised naturally, take beef chunks out and reduce leftover juice in pressure cooker
7. Shred beef chunks using two forks
8. Pour reduced juice over the top
9. Top with coriander and serve with lettuce cups and veggies