Soba Noodles Beef Stir-Fry, Shiitake Mushrooms, Baby Bok Choy

This week I attended a Q&A with Justin Rosenberg, the CEO of Honeygrow. Honeygrow is a Philadelphia-based fast-casual restaurant chain that offers stir-fries and salads. Justin came up with his concept while he was vegan, and most of his diet consisted of stir-fries. He realized that he could build a business around that dish and that people would surely line up for delicious take-out food they’d feel good eating. In other words, Honeygrow resembles an Asian spin on Chipotle‘s “healthier” and local take on Mexican food. Their motto is that they’re “Honestly Grown Locally,” which reflects a search for the best ingredients possible. Yet, the stores aren’t organized in the same way, and the customizing rather happens on handy tablets that face the open kitchen.

Honeygrow therefore merges technology and sleek interior design in their locations, for the greatest pleasure of their customers. On touchscreens, you start off by picking the base (noodles, rice, greens, etc), followed by the proteins (or not), the add-ins, the crunchy toppings and the sauce. They also offer ready made combos for those overwhelmed by the number of options. It’s very efficient and user-friendly, and optimizes the flow in their stores. Justin’s story was very inspiring, and made me like his brand even more. Essentially, the main takeaway is that you can do anything if you really put your mind into it and devote all of your energy to your goals.

 

The last stir-fry I had there was so good that I’ve been craving more ever since. Since I had a bunch of “stir-fry friendly” ingredients in my fridge, I made my own instead of going back to the store right away. I went with a beef stir-fry and soba noodles, and added bok choy which I find to be one of the best ingredients to add to noodle dishes. The sauce really steals the show in this stir-fry, it’s very savory and complements the umami of the mushrooms. The rice vinegar and green onions further brighten up the mix by bringing a slight acidity and color respectively. Overall this is a great substitute for those of you who don’t have a Honeygrow around! Bon appétit!

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Total time: 20 minutes

Ingredients: 

• 1 small tri-tip steak
• 1 baby bok choy
• 3 shiitake mushrooms
• 2 green onions
• 1 oz. soba dry noodles
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 1/2 tsp rice vinegar
• a pinch of sesame seeds
• olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Bring some water to a boil in a large pot.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables. Roughly chop the baby bok choy and the shiitake mushrooms into strips. Mince the green onions and set aside.
3. Heat some olive oil in a pan. Season both sides of the steak with salt and pepper, and let it sear until golden (about 2 minutes). Flip it and cook the other side for another 2 minutes. Then, lower the heat and cook through for 1-2 minutes or so (it’ll be slightly under-done). Let the steak rest on a cutting board.
4. Cook the noodles in the boiling water for 4 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, toss the vegetables in the pan where you just cooked the meat. Let them soften and get a quick char on high heat.
6. While the veggies cook, whisk together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil and sesame seeds in a small bowl.
7. Cut the meat into thin strips. Toss them, as well as the noodles, into the pan with all the veggies. Drizzle with the sauce and stir it all together for a minute, until all the sauce has been soaked.
8. Dress with sesame seeds, and enjoy!

TIP: This recipe would be just as delicious without the meat! You could just add more noodles instead, or replace it with some tofu/egg if you really wanted the extra protein.

“Wok de Nouilles Soba au Boeuf, Chou Bok Choy et Champignons Shiitake”

Temps Total: 20 minutes

Ingrédients: 

• 1 petit steak tri-tip
• 1 petit bok choy
• 3 champignons shiitake
• 2 oignons de printemps
• 30g de nouilles soba sèches
• 1 c.s de sauce soja
• 1 c.c d’huile de sésame
• 1 1/2 c.c de vinaigre de riz
• une pincée de graines de sésame
• de l’huile d’olive
• sel de mer et poivre noir fraichement moulu

Directions:

1. Faites bouillir de l’eau dans une grande casserole.
2. Pendant ce temps, préparez les légumes. Coupez grossièrement le bok choy et les champignons en lamelles. Émincez les oignons de printemps. Réservez.
3. Faites chauffer de l’huile dans une poêle. Assaisonnez les deux côtés du steak avec sel et poivre, et laissez-le saisir pendant 2 minutes. Retournez-le pour dorer l’autre côté pendant 2 minutes de plus. Baissez alors le feu et laissez encore cuire 1-2 minutes (le steak sera saignant). Puis, laissez-le reposer sur une planche à découper.
4. Faites cuire les nouilles dans l’eau bouillante pendant 4 minutes.
5. Pendant ce temps, ajoutez les légumes à la poêle où vous avez fait cuire la viande.  Laissez-les suer et griller légèrement à feu fort.
6. Alors que les légumes cuisent, mélangez la sauce soja, le vinaigre de riz, l’huile et les graines de sésame dans un petit bol.
7. Découpez la viande en fines lamelles et ajoutez-les, ainsi que les nouilles, à la poêle avec les légumes. Versez la sauce et faites sauter le tout énergiquement jusqu’à ce que la sauce soit absorbée.
8. Garnissez avec quelques graines de sésame et bon appétit!

LE PLUS: Cette recette est aussi délicieuse sans la viande. Il suffit de la remplacer par plus de nouilles ou du tofu/des œufs pour plus de protéines.

 

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