Thai basil beef

I can’t wait to make this dish again! I don’t eat a lot of meat but this is worth every bite. Friends reached out to me on social media as far away as Canada and England asking me for this recipe. So here it is. This recipe has been adapted from Tieghan Gerard’s cook book ‘Half Baked Harvest Super Simple’.

Ingredients

8 ounces rice noodles

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 pound lean ground beef

3 garlic cloves, minced or grated

1 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated

1/2 cup Thai sweet chili sauce

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce or tamari

1 head of baby bok choy, finely sliced

1 cup of snow peas, diced

1 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped

juice of 2 limes

1/2 cup salted peanuts, chopped

2 green onions, finely sliced

fresh mint leaves, chopped (optional)

Creating the Magic!

Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add the rice noodles and cook according to the package directions, until softened. Once cooked, drain the noodles and sprinkle a little sesame oil over the noodles to stop them from sticking.

In a large skillet, heat the sesame oil over a medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the beef and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 5-8 minutes. Drain off any grease. Add the ginger and garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in the chili sauce, soy sauce and 1/2 cup of water and cook until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Add the bok choy and snow peas and cook for another 5 minutes or so on a high heat. You may need to add a little more water. Add the noddles and cook, tossing to coat, until warmed through, about 1 minute. Remove from the skillet and add the chopped basil, lime juice, green onions, salted peanuts and optional mint.

Enjoy!

Note: I didn’t have any noodles on hand when I made this dish, so I just made some rice and kept it as a side.