Friday is Fast Night: Beef Hot Pot

A few of you probably caught on through Twitter that I was finally going to kick off food week, weeks after the reveal. That's ten points for being patient, and ten more points for following the feed.

Beef Hot Pot

Friday is pay-day for me, and that also makes it grocery night. Where I work most Fridays (I actually lobby to work Friday-Saturday-Sunday most of the time), I usually don't do the groceries until after I've worked, which means what whatever I choose for Friday's supper has to be something I can put together quickly - usually a stir-fry or a close relative. A few of you probably know that my first international cuisine love affair was Japanese, and sukiyaki was one of the first dishes I learned how to prepare. Of course, this isn't a proper sukiyaki, just my response to it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Beef Hot Pot - Duke Brunswick Variation

This dish combines beef loin, mushrooms, cabbage, noodles, and a umami-focused stock. This simplified version (Auditor's Note: "Duke" is my shorthand for recipes that include short-cuts) is streamlined for the busy home kitchen. Serves 2

Ingredients

• ½ kg. Beef Loin, Striploin, or Tenderloin, cut into strips
• ¼ head of green cabbage, sliced into strips
• ½ Red Onion, sliced to half-rings
• 4 or 5 Large Button Mushrooms, Sliced
• ~1 L beef stock, preferably low-sodium packaged
• 1 Ramen Noodle Cake, per Pot Noodle
• Trace quantities of soy sauce, canola (or vegetable) oil, black pepper, and sage.

Procedure

1. Over medium heat, bring stock to a boil. Cook noodles and reserve both cooked noodles and stock separately. Allow stock to simmer.
2. In frying pan, heat a thin layer of oil. Stir-fry, in order, onions, cabbage, and mushroom, seasoning with pepper, and powdered sage. Once tender, lightly toss with soy sauce. Add to stock.
3. Replace noodles into the pot.
4. Add the raw beef slices. Simmer until cooked to taste.

Traditionally, hot-pot dishes are served communally out of a large pot kept hot at the table, from which the diners serve themselves. For this particular meal I recommend nothing more to drink that clear, cool water. There should be flavour enough in the meal itself.

Variation: Brunswick Variation - use fresh beef stock prepared in situ in place of prepared product.