Chinese Pepper Steak
I’m not even going to say that this is anything near authentic. But it is good. And, unlike some stir-fry recipes I’ve tried, it requires little chopping and even less supervision. As long as you remember to start your rice first, there is no reason that you shouldn’t have dinner on the table in 30 minutes. You’ll even have time to sip a glass of wine and cut up some oranges or something for a side dish. An added bonus: the “green stuff” is easy to remove for those who don’t like it.

You can’t beat a family-friendly recipe that is friendly to the chef, as well.

Chinese Pepper Steak
1 pound round steak
2 T. butter
2 T. vegetable or corn oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 t. (or more) freshly ground pepper
8 T. soy sauce
1 t. sugar
1 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes in juice, sort of drained
2 green (or red) peppers, cut into thin strips
1/2 T. cornstarch
2T. cold water
4 green onions, chopped

Slice steak in short crosswise pieces as thinly as possible. Heat butter and oil in a skillet and add garlic and pepper. Add beef and cook until brown on both sides. Add the soy sauce and sugar, cover and cook over high heat for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and peppers. Cover and cook 5 more minutes. While it is cooking, put the cornstarch and water in a small lidded jar and shake until it is dissolved. When the 5 minutes are up, take the cover off and add the cornstarch mixture. Cook, stirring until the sauce is thickened. Serve on top of rice. Sprinkle with green onion for garnish.