when life gets in the way

Everyone needs to have a fast and easy dish in their repertoire - something that you can cook easily especially when life gets in the way. You know those instances when you lose track of  time watching reruns of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit and before  you know it your husband calls  saying, "Love, I will be home in 30 minutes!" And you know that the phone call was really code for "I'm exhausted from a long day at work. I can't wait to get home so I can eat and relax on the couch. I hope you already have food ready!"

Yes, that sometimes happens at home. When this occurs I frantically dart to my kitchen, and before I could even tie the strings of my apron, I already have my beef stir fry in mind. Trust me, you can easily whip up this dish on the fly without your husband ever suspecting a hint of your procrastination. On the contrary, he would think you put forth a lot of planning to pull off this scrumptious meal. Shh it's our little secret haha!

Beef Tips with Dried Cranberry and Almonds

Ingredients:      
                      
1 lb beef sirloin, cut into strips
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
onions, sliced
1/2 green pepper sliced
1 carrots, sliced
1/2 c dried cranberries
1/2 c almonds
1/2 c soup stock
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbs[ white sugar (optional)
2 thinly sliced ginger

1.                   

In a bowl, thoroughly mix beef tips with soy sauce, sesame oil, and oyster sauce. Toss cornstarch to coat the beef. Set aside.

*Note: If you are not in a rush, you can refrigerate the beef to allow the marinade to soak in.

In a skillet, heat cooking oil. Add the beef, do not stir immediately. Allow one side of the beef to caramelize then flip it to caramelize the other side as well. Add the veggies, stir fry until cooked. Drizzle some sesame oil to enhance the flavor.

And voilà! dinner is ready. You still might even be able to catch the last few scenes of Stabler and Liv on TV haha... Enjoy!