Tomato beef is one of those summer dishes that uses garden produce and what’s on hand. It’s a fake stir-fry: things are cooked one layer at a time, bundled into a large bowl, then mixed and served. Don’t be alarmed by the length of the recipe – it’s all chop and sear and poof, done’.
Of course you man vary the vegetables you use: this is my own favorite combination.
Cook your rice: I like to use a rice cooker, so that’s easy. While the rice cooks: slice the beef thinly into strips, across the grain. Slice the onion in half, then cut in ‘meridians’ (the long way). Cut the celery stalk diagonally, the pepper in strips. Slice the mushrooms. Trim the beans, and cut into 1-inch pieces. Cut the tomatoes into small wedges.
Get out a bowl that a plate fits over, and set it near the stove. Heat a skillet over medium heat. When the skillet is hot, add 1-2 tsp oil, and when the oil shimmers, barely brown the steak strips, then transfer them and their juices into the bowl. Cover the bowl, to keep everything warm. Then, one by one, cook the vegetables, dumping them into your bowl layer by layer, covering after each one. Cook them in this order: onions, celery, green or red pepper, mushrooms, green or yellow beans, tomato wedges.
Deglaze the pan with a little soy sauce and a splash of mirin, then add that ‘sauce’ to the bowl. Stir well to combine it all, and serve with rice.
NOTE: In my photo, the rice is garnished with gomashio, a Japanese salt/sesame seasoning.
Tomato Beef
Ingredients
- 6-8 oz beef steak, well trimmed may use leftover rare steak
- 1 onion
- 2 stalks celery
- 1 red bell pepper green or yellow is okay too
- 5 large mushrooms
- 10-12 green beans yellow are okay too
- 1 ripe tomato use 2 if they're small
- 1 Tbsp mirin
- 1½ Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp peanut oil
- cooked rice
Instructions
- Cook your rice: I like to use a rice cooker, so that’s easy. While the rice cooks: slice the beef thinly into strips, across the grain. Slice the onion in half, then cut in ‘meridians’ (the long way). Cut the celery stalk diagonally, the pepper in strips. Slice the mushrooms. Trim the beans, and cut into 1-inch pieces. Cut the tomatoes into small wedges.
- Get out a large bowl that a plate fits over, and set it near the stove. Heat a skillet over medium heat.
- When the skillet is hot, add 1-2 tsp oil, and when the oil shimmers, barely brown the steak strips, then transfer them and their juices into the bowl. Cover the bowl, to keep everything warm.
- Then, one by one, cook the vegetables, dumping them into your bowl layer by layer, covering after each one. Cook them in this order: onions, celery, green or red pepper, mushrooms, green or yellow beans, tomato wedges.
- Deglaze the pan with a little soy sauce and a splash of mirin, then add that ‘sauce’ to the bowl. Stir well to combine it all, and serve with rice.