The mince almost caramelises by rendering out the fat while cooking in the lip-smacking sauce. The golden rule is to never overcrowd your pan. 

Asian mushroom & mince stir-fry

Serves 3-4 

Ingredients

3 Tbsp canola oil
300g mixed mushrooms
150g pork mince or pork sausage meat
400g beef mince
Salt and milled pepper
2 tsp grated ginger
4 cloves garlic, grated
2 Thai red chillies, deseeded and sliced (optional)
3 Tbsp soy sauce
3 Tbsp oyster sauce
1 Tbsp fish sauce
Lemon juice to taste (lime works well, too)
1 cup sliced Swiss chard (or pak choi)
Rice noodles (or rice), for serving
Spring onions and coriander, to garnish

Method

1.  Heat a small drizzle of oil in a hot pan over high heat until almost smoking.
2.  Add mushrooms in 2-3 batches and fry, occasionally pressing down with a spatula (you should hear a squeaking sound) to brown well. Remove, season and set aside. 
3.  Add another drizzle of oil in the same pan and stir-fry mince in 2-3 batches. (This is important, as overcrowding will steam mince instead of sear and brown.) Season lightly and continuously move the mince with a spatula, breaking up lumps of meat, until well browned.
4.  Add grated ginger, garlic, red chillies, soy-, oyster- and fish sauces. Stir-fry until sticky. Add lemon juice and adjust seasoning to taste.
5.  Toss through the Swiss chard, stirring to wilt, then return mushrooms to reheat.
6.  Serve stir-fried mince over noodles, topped with spring onion and coriander.

Listen up

• Mushrooms are little sponges, so it’s best to cook them over high heat with a little oil. To know if your pan is hot enough, add a mushroom and press down onto it using a spatula. If the mushroom makes a squeaking sound, it’s hot enough. 
• For mince to crisp up and caramelise, your pan should not be overcrowded. You should hear a searing sound throughout cooking the mince, although it will soften while cooking, which indicates the fat is rendering out and meat is browning. 

Recipes & styling: Liezl Vermeulen 
Photography: Zhann Solomons 

Also read: Braai grid mushroom pizza

The post Asian mushroom & mince stir-fry appeared first on MyKitchen.

Unlike most curries, this one is drier with minimal sauce as the meat is meant to absorb all the flavour while it cooks down. 

Beef rendang 

Serves 4 

Ingredients

For the spice blend  

3 shallots, sliced 
3cm piece ginger, peeled and grated 
2 lemongrass stalks, chopped 
4 cloves garlic 
10 dried chillies, soaked in warm water and seeded  

Canola oil for frying 
1 stick cinnamon 
3 cloves 
3 star anise 
3 cardamom pods 
Salt and milled pepper 
1kg beef short ribs 
1 lemongrass stalk, bruised 
2 cans (410g each) coconut cream 
2 tsp tamarind pulp or concentrate (optional) 
1 cup water 
5 kaffir lime leaves 
1/4 cup desiccated coconut, toasted + extra for serving 
1 Tbsp brown sugar Flatbread, for serving  

Method 

1. Blitz spice ingredients until fine. 
2. Heat oil in a pot and fry 3 Tbsp of the spice paste for 1-2 minutes. 
3. Stir through whole spice and cook for another minute. 
4. Season beef well. Add beef and lemongrass to pot and brown well, about 3-5 minutes. 
5. Add coconut cream, tamarind pulp or concentrate (if using) and water. Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. 
6. Stir through lime leaves, desiccated coconut and sugar, then simmer covered for about 1½  hours or until meat is tender and sauce has reduced almost completely. 7. Serve hot sprinkled with extra coconut, with flatbread on the side. 

Recipes & styling: Chad January
Photographs: Zhann Solomons  

The post Beef rendang recipe appeared first on MyKitchen.