Do you ever wonder what goes into that delicious beef stir fry that we enjoy when we dine out? This recipe is here to help! 
Fair warning. This is a personal post, so if you don’t know me and are here for the recipe only, skip to the bottom!
There are good days and there are horrific days, sadly the last two were of the latter kind. Monday started off with a text from Brad telling me that he was knocked off his bike by a car on his way to work. We live in London, where there are cycling lanes and many people commute to work on their bikes.
It’s cheaper, more convenient and a great exercise but it is also dangerous. I can’t be bothered to pull up the stats right now but people get killed every year, and Brad has been very lucky to get away with a few bumps, scrapes and a fat lip, and what later turned out to be a light concussion.
All of this would’ve been fine if my husband wasn’t as responsible as he is and didn’t proceed to his office and spent his day in meetings, and then a quick trip to the Russian Visa office to pick up our passports and visas for an upcoming family trip to Russia.
When he got home though, the passports weren’t in his backpack. The rest is a blur. We spent the next day anxiously waiting for each phone call, email and knock on the door to be someone returning our passports but nothing of the sort happened. Not everything ends wrapped up neatly and pulled together in a beautiful bow. Life is messy and our life is no exception.
And although everything is replaceable, not everything is easy. Being Canadian in the UK our passports take at least a month to replace (our trip is in 3 weeks), then we need to re-apply for visas.
Then there is the money question. How to pay for all of this. Again. I am writing this in the middle of not knowing the answers. In the middle of the mess of trying to figure it out although I would’ve loved to know it all, I am struggling to see clearly right now.
Why is this trip so important? Because my kids have never been to the country I was born in. My family in Russia has been counting days to our arrival, so many dreams are in danger of being crushed. I can’t even… it’s just too painful.
How can I even talk about food now? Well, I didn’t feel hungry for one minute all day yesterday and then when dinner rolled around, I felt lost and pulled up my laptop to order a takeaway, then stopped. It’s expensive. I didn’t even feel hungry to enjoy it.
What takes no effort at all? This Beef, Mushroom and Snow Pea Stir Fry.
I made this beef stir fry a few days ago and it was scheduled to be posted when we are away in Russia BUT…
This stir fry is the meal you want to have up your sleeve when the last thing on your mind is cooking because it’s easy, quick and feels like you ordered in without the expense or unhealthy ingredients.
Tips for making the most flavourful beef stir fry:
- First, use fresh ingredients like real ginger, garlic and chillies.
- Secondly, cut ginger up in matchsticks, slice your red chilli, and mince your garlic. Their taste comes through beautifully when they are not all grated in a mush.
- Thirdly, make sure you have all ingredients listed to create that savoury beef stir fry sauce. Leaving out one small ingredient will make the taste less complex and definitely not as satisfying.
- Lastly, turn your heat up to high, which allows your vegetables to cook beautifully while staying crunchy instead of stewing!
Also don’t forget to add a teaspoon of sesame oil at the very end instead of the beginning.
It’s meant to be used as a flavour enhancer rather than a cooking oil. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves and sliced green onions before serving for extra oomph!
This beef stir fry could be enjoy with rice or noodles. My kids also crunched on some prawn crackers.
For more Asian inspired recipes, check out
Asian Salmon with Carrot and Cucumber Slaw
If you make any of this these recipes, I would love to see you photos! Simply tag @vikalinka in your Instagram snaps to share your creations!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 "/2.5 cm long piece of fresh ginger peeled and cut into matchsticks
- 3 large or 5 medium garlic cloves minced
- 1 red chilli sliced, seeds removed
- 1 1/2 lbs/700 g beef steak sliced
- 4 tbsp oyster sauce
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 8-10 mushrooms sliced thickly
- 2 cups/150g snow peas/mangetout
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro leaves
- 2-3 green onions sliced diagonally
- salt to taste
Instructions
- In a large frying pan or a wok heat the oil and add ginger, chilli and garlic, cook over medium heat for 1 minute until golden and fragrant.
- Add beef and cook for 5-7 minutes over high heat until the beef is sealed, add oyster sauce and soy sauce, stir to coat.
- Add mushroom and snow peas and stir fry for 2-3 minutes over high heat, you might need to add a splash of water if your pan is getting too dry but bare in mind that mushrooms will also release liquid, add sesame oil and take off the heat. The snow peas should be bright green and still crunchy but cooked.
- Garnish with sliced green onions and cilantro leaves before serving with rice or noodles.
Thank you for the recipe
I will try it and hope you have a blessed and safe trip home
Keep up the great and inspiring recipes
Thank you so much, Donna!
Your family somehow made it to Russia and your husband is well! Thank goodness!
I’m half Japanese and my father grew up in his mother’s Japanese restaurant. One trick he taught me about stir frying meat was to cook it early in the process and remove it from the pan then add it back in with the last ingredient. This prevents the meat from becoming tough and rubbery.
The oyster sauce is a must for beef, it gives the dish such great flavor. I use it in fried rice also.
I can’t wait to try this dish.
Great tips! Thanks, Rachel!
I love a fast and flavorful stir fry – this is the perfect weeknight dinner!
Absolutely, Laura! I love that it is so colourful and fresh!
We want to take out kiddos to Ukraine as well. I’d love for them to experience my homeland.
I bet yours will have such a wonderful experience.
The stir fry looks AMAZING as is your photography, as always. <3
Thank you, Valentina! I am hoping they love it. 🙂 I am super excited at the prospect of eating piroshki on every corner.
Follow you on Instagram and was wondering what had happened. Glad your husband is okay! I have had so many adventures with visas and passports that I’ve lost count. The funny thing is that we live in Russia and I’m American but my husband is Russian, so he’s the one that usually needs a visa to go somewhere. We were actually planning a trip to the UK and I was so nervous he wouldn’t get a visa. It was very important to me as my whole family was gathering to honor my father as it’s his ancestral land. I was trying to let go of my dreams, but I was trying to keep my feelings under control in case it didn’t work out. In that case he did get the visa, but we have been stranded abroad, etc. There is no way to expedite a passport? I know it can take a few weeks anyway and then of course the visa process, ugh! I really feel for you and I hope you find a way to fulfill this dream of yours even if it might end up a little differently than expected. I hope you get a miracle! Oh, and P.S. the recipe looks great, too. Might try it when I’m in the U.S. as we don’t happen upon those ingredients very often.
I am so glad to hear your husband got his visa! Those things could be so nerve wracking as they are absolutely out of our control. We are still working out what we can do but are hopeful. Thank you for your comment, Elizabeth.
Hope all works itself out! Hang in there.
Thanks!! We do too!!