Vietnamese shaking beef and noodles

“Shaking” describes how this Vietnamese dish is cooked. Beef cubes, instead of being stir-fried, are browned in a wok. You shake the pan to turn them. The wok or skillet should be very hot before the beef is added so that a crisp brown crust forms.

The beef is served over a bed of warm Chinese noodles flavored with fresh mint and roasted peanuts. The spicy meat and noodles together with the crunchy peanuts make a delicious combination of textures and flavors. This one-dish meal takes only minutes to cook.

Vietnamese Shaking Beef And Noodles

Yield 2 servings. Recipe by Linda Gassenheimer

• For the marinade:

2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons water

2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar

2 teaspoons sesame oil (divided)

2 teaspoons minced garlic (divided)

3/4 pound beef tenderloin

• For noodles with snow peas:

1/4 pound Chinese egg noodles

1/4 pound snow peas (about 2 cups)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 tablespoons fresh mint

2 tablespoons dry roasted peanuts

Mix soy sauce, water, brown sugar, 1 teaspoon sesame oil and 1 teaspoon minced garlic in a small bowl. Remove visible fat from meat and cut into 1/2 -inch cubes. Place meat in marinade for 10 minutes. Make sure all the meat is coated with marinade. While meat marinates, make the noodles.

Bring 3 to 4 quarts of water to a boil. Add noodles and snow peas. Boil 2 minutes or according to noodle package instructions. Drain and toss with sesame oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Divide between two dinner plates.

Drain meat from marinade, reserving liquid. Heat remaining 1 teaspoon sesame oil in a wok or skillet until smoking, about 1 minute. Add remaining 1 teaspoon minced garlic. Add drained meat in one layer and let sit one minute. Be sure every piece of meat is touching the bottom of the pan. Either shake the meat loose or turn it with a spoon and cook 1 minute. Remove meat to a plate and add marinade to pan. Heat marinade in pan for 1 minute.

Mix warmed marinade into noodles and snow peas. Spoon meat over top. Sprinkle with mint and peanuts.

Per serving: 683 calories (32% from fat), 24.6 g fat (7.1 g saturated, 9.9 g monounsaturated), 132 mg cholesterol, 51.0 g protein, 67.9 g carbohydrates,6.3 g fiber, 644 mg sodium.