Winter comfort stir fry

This winter is so cold. It gets dark by mid-afternoon, everything’s gotten so expensive, and the news is depressing ... isn’t there anything positive, uplifting? Well, what about a good meal?

Unlike the one referred to in the classic Alka-Seltzer ad, here’s an idea for a tasty, healthy, economical home-cooked meal, suitable for an individual or a dinner party.And a more than ample serving will cost less than a greasy burger and fries at a fast food restaurant!

I try to buy all the ingredients from my favorite food market: meat, vegetables, rice and a special Asian black pepper sauce.

The end result is a stir- fry dish that combines meat, vegetables, and rice, creating a whole greater than the sum of its parts.

Here is a meal with ingredients for eight people.

While this dish could be made with another meat, I prefer beef. Any high-quality steak will do, but I usually use about a pound and a half of filet mignon. It sounds expensive, but it’s delicious, and you can usually use every bit, unlike most cuts.

I slice the filet mignon up into tiny pieces so that every bite of the finished product has some of the beef in it.And with about 3/16 of a pound of beef per serving, one gets more meat than in a commercial hamburger.

In a wok, I brown the cut meat for a minute or so in a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil making sure not to overcook it. Then I set it aside until the vegetables are nearly cooked and then stir it into the mixture.

I like to use a variety of vegetables. I start with two or three good-sized onions which I slice and then further chop up into small bits. I cook them over high heat until they start to brown, then remove them, adding them back to the wok when the vegetables are nearly done.

I try to get the best vegetables I can find, in season if possible.I typically use four or five different vegetables, all cut into small pieces.I try to find a happy medium between tiny, indistinguishable bits and huge hunks. Some reliable favorites are asparagus, string beans, sweet orange and yellow peppers, carrots and red cabbage. I even check my refrigerator for leftovers that might be good in the mix and I always try to have something colorful such as carrots or peppers.

Some folks like the stir fry vegetables al dente, some prefer more fully cooked; but it usually works best if all are cooked about the same amount. I cook the vegetables fast over high heat but stand over them to avoid overcooking and take frequent test bites. It’s better to undercook rather than overcook, especially if some of it is to be reheated and eaten the next day.

Rice inevitably makes the dish tastier and a more balanced meal. Most any high quality variety will do, but I prefer — when I can find it — wild rice for its greater flavor. And although some might find it decadent, I add a moderate amount of butter. The rice, of course, is cooked separately according to manufacturer’s directions and added to the overall mix only when served.

A final ingredient which helps bind the whole dish together and is tasty is a small amount of a specially prepared Asian black pepper sauce. It can be applied in small doses to individual portions and should be stirred in well.

I cook everything but the rice in a standard wok with a top that speeds and evens out the cooking, but a good size fry pan will do fine. The final stir fry tastes best served hot.

One more thing. How about a compatible dessert? Try homemade applesauce. Cut up several apples, discarding the cores but keeping the skins. Cook the pieces until soft and squeeze through a food mill made for the purpose and voilà, fresh apple sauce.

Enjoy!

Architect and landscape designer Mac Gordon lives in Lakeville