Who doesn’t love a good Chinese takeaway, right? But wouldn’t it be better to make it at home? 😀 Do follow the instructions though and marinate the meat a day ahead – it will turn out soft and insanely aromatic when you cook it the following day 🙂

I never thought about it this way, but I’ve just realised that a stir-fry like this is actually pretty healthy. It’s a great way of  sneaking vegetables into your diet without even realising it. To make it even healthier, don’t be too generous with the oil and choose an organic, reduced salt stock cube.

Being light-handed on the sesame oil is definitely the trickiest part. To be perfectly honest, it’s my weakness  and I always add a generous amount. It smells divine.

For 2-3 servings you’ll need:

The evening before:

• 350g beef
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 of a small hot pepper – optional
• Sesame oil, soy sauce, five spice mix*

Cut the meat into thin – really thin – small slices. Finely chop garlic and hot pepper. Combine with meat in a bowl, stir in a tablespoon of sesame oil, a tablespoon of soy sauce and a tablespoon of Chinese five spice mix. Put in the fridge and leave overnight.

The next day:

• 1 carrot
• 1/2 parsnip
• 1/4 medium celery root
• A big handful of broccoli florets
• 1 onion
• 1/3 of green bell pepper
• 1/2 of red bell pepper
• 250ml beef or vegetable stock (250ml of water and half a stock cube)
• 1 generous teaspoon of cornstarch
• Salt, pepper, soy sauce, sesame oil, five spice mix

Also:

• Rice
• Turmeric (spice), salt
• Sesame seeds for garnish – optional

Cook the rice following the instructions on the package. Add a teaspoon of turmeric in the water to have nicely dyed bright yellow rice at the end.

Chop the carrot, parsnip and celery into matchsticks. Dice the onion. Cut the peppers into 2x2cm pieces. In a wok, fry the onion in sesame oil until golden. Add meat and fry until it’s no longer raw. It won’t take long, a few minutes should be enough. Stir in the remaining vegetables and pour in the stock. Dissolve cornstarch in half a glass of cold water and pour in the wok. Cook for a few extra minutes until the vegetables have softened and the sauce has thickened. Season to taste and serve with rice. Garnish with sesame seeds if you like.

Enjoy 🙂

*If you can’t find five spice mixtures in a packet, you can make it yourself. It usually consists of star anise, cloves, cinnamon, pepper and fennel seeds.

• Savoury