Spicy Beef and Greens

The base recipe for this is something I call Meat and Greens. The basics, saute meat, add some onion and garlic (plus other veg as wanted), let simmer, add a little broth, and then smother with chopped greens (spinach,kale, chard, collard greens) until wilted, season and done.

I’ve made this with ground turkey, gourmet chicken sausage, had Mexican, Cajun, Chinese and Korean flavor profiles. It’s a versatile recipe. And boy, do I love some wilted dark leafy greens.

This is the one I make most often. It’s a spicy Asian-ish dish.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 lb ground beef
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup mushrooms, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, smashed and minced
• 1/2 t ginger paste
• 1/2 t red chili paste
• 1/2 cup beef stock
• water as needed
• splash soy sauce – or coconut aminos, Bragg’s liquid aminos, Maggi seasoning
• 2 cups greens, chopped – this is a densely packed 2 cups, smoosh them down
• cayenne

Directions:

1. Over medium-high heat, saute the beef until brown.
2. Add the chopped onion and cook until it begins to soften.
3. Add the bell pepper, let cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add the chopped mushrooms and cook until they’ve released a lot of liquid and are starting to brown up.
5. Add the garlic, ginger paste and chili paste. Stir through, then add the beef stock and a few splashes of soy sauce.
6. Add the chopped greens on top, cover and cook until they are darker green and nicely wilted. You can add more water as needed to help steam.
7. Remove the cover, stir it all up, and add some cayenne and let cook until most of the liquid has evaporated.

Notes:

• My digital scale has died, so I had to eyeball things and use volume measurement instead of weight. As I have some control freak tendencies, I was on the verge of hyperventilating over it for a few minutes, then got myself together and said, “You can make this in your sleep. Just do it.” Good news is my new scale is on its way. 😀
• I sometimes buy ginger paste and chili paste in a tube for ease of convenience. Also this beef broth concentrate. I don’t always have my homemade beef stock on hand, and a squirt oor two of this stuff is great.

Calorie Breakdown:

Ok, by eyeballing and guessing at the amounts, this is the calorie breakdown for this meal. We’re also assuming that the nutrient breakdown in the Livestrong database is accurate.

After I get my new scale, I’ll make this again, only I’ll weigh everything out to the gram, and re-enter the data, we’ll see how far off the breakdown is.