Ground beef and frozen vegetable stir-fry
A bag of frozen stir-fry vegetables and a pound of beef in a sweet soy garlic sauce, dinner from the freezer in 30 minutes.
- 35 min total
- 20 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 4
- About $2.43 a serving
- 570 calories
- Good the next day
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1½ cups long-grain white rice
- 1 lb 85/15 ground beef
- 12 oz frozen stir-fry vegetables
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1 tsp sesame seeds (optional)
From your pantry
- 2½ cups water, divided
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Each serving has about 570 calories, 29 g protein, 71 g carbs and 18 g fat, and costs about $2.43 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No long-grain white rice? Jasmine rice or basmati rice works.
- No 85/15 ground beef? 90/10 ground beef works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the rice until the water runs mostly clear. Put it in a with 2¼ cups water and the salt and over high.
Rinse. Rinsing means running cold water over rice or canned beans in a strainer while you swish them around. It washes off loose starch and can liquid, so rice cooks up fluffy and beans taste clean.
How you’ll know: The water running out goes from cloudy to mostly clear; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
Cover, turn to low and cook 18 minutes.
Low heatTimer: 18 min
the soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, cornstarch and remaining ¼ cup water in a small bowl.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Heat a large over medium-high and cook the beef 7 to 8 minutes, breaking it up, until no pink is left. Spoon off the fat.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium-high heatTimer: 7 min 30 sec
Food safety: Ground beef, pork and lamb are done at 160°F. When it’s cooked through there’s no pink left anywhere in the pan.
Push the beef to one side and add the frozen vegetables straight from the bag. Cook 5 to 6 minutes, stirring, until hot and .
Tender-crisp. Tender-crisp means vegetables cooked until just tender but still with a little snap. They keep their bright color and crunch instead of going soft and dull.
How you’ll know: A fork goes in with slight resistance, and the color is bright, not olive or gray.
Medium-high heatTimer: 5 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: Don’t thaw them first. Straight from the freezer, they stay crisp instead of soggy.Stir in the garlic and ginger for 30 seconds.
Medium-high heat
Stir the sauce, pour it in, and let it bubble 1 to 2 minutes, until thick and glossy.
Medium-high heatTimer: 1 min 30 sec
Serve over the rice with sesame seeds on top.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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