Earlier this summer our sugar snap peas were going nuts. It was the first time I tried  to grow them and quiet frankly… I was never really interested in eating them… it was just something new. Maybe because I viewed them as a diet food.. and I don’t particularly like diets… I’d rather just workout instead and still eat what I want! Just watch your portion sizes and you’ll be fine. 

Everyone I’ve seen eat them always eats them raw… after going about a week eating sugar snaps and ranch… I decided it was time to come up with a new way to use them. The first thought that popped into my head was a stir fry. I hadn’t had a stir fry in a long time so… why not. Lets do this! I did give Google a good ol’ search to see what I could come up with and I found this Beef and Snow Pea recipe from The Pioneer Woman. Her pictures looked fantastic and well the recipe sounded great as well.

So after finding Ree’s recipe… I had to do my own thing…

If I haven’t told you this before… I’m more of a “go grab whatever looks good and throw it together” type girl. I rarely follow recipes… except when I’m baking. I still love using baking recipes that require weights instead of cups and such… it’s just so much more accurate. But anyway… 

Off to search the kitchen cabinets for some lovely spices… I didn’t have everything the original recipe called for, but who cares. Also, I didn’t have any flank steak thawed out; I just had some back straps from a deer we had harvested last fall. What are back straps you ask? Well they are part of the loin area… super tender just like any other animals’ loin-eye.

One thing about cooking… you can use whatever it is you have. You don’t have to go to the store and buy flank steak just because the recipe says. If you have a steak thawed out… loin… anything that’s going to be tender… use it. Don’t let one simple ingredient hold you back! Be creative and use what you already have.

Regardless if you have a recipe in front of you… put your own twists and likes into it. I always do 🙂

I’ve made this recipe a few times using different cuts. I’ve thinly sliced up a {beef} sirloin steak, tenderized deer steak (which is really just a slice of loin that has been ran through our tenderizer), and the back strap from a deer. Whether you use beef or venison as most people call it instead of deer…. it’s fantastic!

I love this stir fry and it’s very quick and easy. Who doesn’t like quick and easy these days?!

And when I just want to simply eat sugar snaps by themselves now… I give them a quick sauté and yummy yummy in my tummy!! Sautéing always brings out more flavor… I mean why hadn’t I done this before?!

Beef or Venison Stir Fry with Sugar Snap Peas

2013-09-05 12:07:18

Serves 4

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Prep Time

5 min

Cook Time

15 min

Total Time

20 min

Prep Time

5 min

Cook Time

15 min

Total Time

20 min

Ingredients

1. 1-1 1/2 pounds flank steak, sirloin steak, or venison loin steak (whatever you have on hand), trimmed of fat, sliced thinly against the grain, or in bite size chunks
2. 3/4 cup soy sauce
3. 2 tablespoons brown sugar
4. 2 tablespoons cornstarch
5. 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried ginger
6. 8 ounces fresh sugar snap peas, ends trimmed
7. 5 green onions, 1/2 inch slices or 1/4 cup onion minced
8. Salt to taste
9. Oil
10. Crushed Red Pepper
11. Long Grain Rice or Jasmine, cooked according to package
12. Chow Mein Noodles

Instructions

1. In a bowl, mix together soy sauce, brown sugar, cornstarch, and ginger. Pour liquid over the sliced meat in a bowl and toss with hands; set aside
2. Heat 3 tablespoons or so of oil in a heavy skillet or wok over high heat
3. Add snow peas and stir for 1 minute; remove to a separate plate. Set aside
4. Allow pan to get very hot again
5. Add meat mixture to the hot oil and green onions. Spread out meat, covering the bottom of the skillet (do not stir for a good minute to allow the meat to brown). Turn meat to the other side and cook for another 30 seconds or until meat has cooked (it will not take very long if the meat is sliced thin). Add any remaining marinate to the skillet along with the peas. Stir over high heat for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Check seasonings and add salt if needed. Mixture will thicken as it sits
6. Serve immediately over cooked rice
7. Sprinkle with crushed red pepper if you would like to add a touch of spice and Chow Mein noodles

Notes

1. **You can use whatever tender meat cut you have on hand, just be sure to slice thin**
2. **Do not be afraid to use more sugar snap peas, I've used up to a pound at a time... they're delicious**

Adapted from The Pioneer Woman

Adapted from The Pioneer Woman

From Gate to Plate http://fromgatetoplate.com/