A Quilter Has to Eat #2--Curried Beef

While I can't compete with Ms P's. "Slack Tea Thursday" over at Quilting in My Pyjamas, my goal is to be in and out of the kitchen in an hour. That includes dinner preparation, unloading the dishwasher, and reloading it. To that end, I bring to you Curried Beef:

Ingredients:
Olive oil for sautéing
2 onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced or chopped
1 ½ lbs sliced beef
1 can diced tomatoes
1 red bell pepper
16 oz frozen broccoli
1 C frozen peas
water

Spices:
½ tsp tumeric
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp ginger
¼ tsp dried mustard
¼ tsp fennel seeds
¾ tsp black pepper (¾ tsp will be pretty peppery, so I often use a bit less)
red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions:
In a large pan (I use my 12" skillet), sauté the onion and garlic until they begin to soften. While sautéing the onion and garlic add the spices. Add beef and brown a bit. Add remaining ingredients and barely cover with water. Simmer until cooked.

To speed up the process just a bit, I buy premium stew meat beef, which is already cut into pieces, so I don't have to slice up steak. I also usually start browning the meat and add the onion and garlic as I get them chopped. Then I add the spices. Stir the spices in a bit, but don't worry that they're not well mixed at this point. (They'll be a bit sticky.) They'll mix in fine once you add the liquid.

It usually takes me about 25 minutes to get all the ingredients in the pan. I let it cook for another 35 minutes to make an hour total from start to finish. During this 35 minutes, I unload the dishwasher and reload. After supper, with the whole meal prepared in one pan, clean up takes about 5 minutes.

You'll notice I didn't give an amount for the red pepper flakes. That's because I'm not qualified to do so. Red pepper flakes are often included in curry, however, the people at my house tend to be weenies about spicy hot food, so I don't use any red pepper flakes. Those brave souls among you will have to experiment if you want to add the hot stuff.

If you have a smaller family (there are three of us), there will probably be enough curried beef left over for another meal. It freezes well. At a later date, take the curried beef out of the freezer, thaw, and reheat in the microwave. Now that is a slack meal that I bet even Ms. P could appreciate!