Balsamic Caramel Beef with Shiitake Mushrooms, Rice, and Toasted Coconut
When Monica Pope opened her first restaurant in the early 1990s, her ambition was "to change the way Houston ate." Her award-winning local, organic Houston restaurant, T'afia, fulfills that ambition. For this signature beef dish, Pope recommends hormone- and antibiotic-free meat and allorganic produce.
Ingredients
¼ cup shaved or shredded coconut (may be store-bought or freshly shaved with a grater into medium-sized shreds)2 cups rice
2 cups chicken stock (or low-sodium broth)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon molasses
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
6 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
1 piece fresh ginger (about 1 inch long), peeled and minced
2 cups shiitake mushrooms, sliced
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1½ pounds beef, cut into 1½-inch cubes
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground pepper
Nutrition Facts
Per serving: 675 calories, 26 g fat (9.5 g saturated), 79 g carbohydrates, 31 g protein, 4 g fiber, 766 mg sodium (33% Daily Value).Read more Healthy Recipes.
Directions
-
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Place shredded coconut on a
thin baking sheet and bake,
stirring often, until golden
brown, about 20 minutes.
Remove from oven, cool, and
set aside.
- Cook the rice: Follow the instructions on the package of your favorite rice. (Pope recommends Japanese sticky rice.) When done, keep warm until ready to serve.
- While the rice is cooking, prepare the sauce: In a large bowl, combine chicken stock, soy sauce, molasses, vinegar, sugar, garlic, and ginger.
- In a sauté pan over medium heat, sauté mushrooms in 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil until tender, then set aside.
- In a large bowl, sift flour, salt, and pepper until thoroughly mixed. Working in small batches, dredge beef cubes in the seasoned flour, shake off excess flour, and sear with 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat for 3 minutes. (Note: This will cook the beef only about halfway.)
- When all beef cubes have been seared, combine all of the beef and mushrooms in the pan. Pour in ½ cup sauce and bring to a boil, shaking pan occasionally, until sauce has slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Assemble the dish: Mound rice in the middle of the plates. Top with beef and balsamic-caramel sauce. Garnish with toasted coconut.
