Bento Box Day 2: Down Home Bento

Day 2 of my bento box experiment. For the history of this experiment, see Bento Box Day 1 and Little Tokyo. Today's bento box was for those without an asian market (see! I read my comments!): one pan soy-fried beef tip steak, brown rice, roasted corn, snow peas, and shiitake mushrooms.

Soy-fried Steak, with roasted corn, snow peas, and shiitake mushrooms
(Makes 3 well balanced and filling servings. Takes ~ 15 minutes.)

1 thin beef tip steak, in 1" slices
sprinkle of salt
sprinkle of pepper
~2 tbsp soy sauce, divided
6 tbsp corn
handful snow peas, sliced
2 shiitake mushrooms, sliced

Oil a pan and turn on high heat. Add the steak slices into the pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Brown well on both sides until it gets those tasty little dark brown crispy bits; pour in 1 tbsp soy sauce. Stir to coat.

Remove meat.

Add corn and snow peas to the same pan, stir in with additional .5-1 tbsp soy sauce, over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes. Last, add the sliced mushrooms in and stir for another minute or so.

Remove. And you're done. Yum yum. :)

Enjoy!

Chunky Chicken Chili

So, in the vein of delicious, easy meals in a bowl, I thought I'd offer up one of the easiest chilis I have ever made and thoroughly enjoyed. This is a high protein, low fat, energy boosting, quick-fix meal. Enjoy!

Chunky Chicken Chili
(makes ~6 servings)

2 tbsp grapeseed oil
1-2 lbs of chicken meat, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/4 onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 can diced, fire-roasted tomatoes (I use the Muir Glen brand, with green chiles for a little kick)
1 can great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can whole kernel corn, rinsed and drained
lime juice, to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
milled sea salt, to taste

Heat the oil in the bottom of a stock pot and cook the onion and garlic until the onions are soft and the garlic is browned (about 3 minutes).

Add the chicken broth and the fire-roasted tomatoes; stir. Add the chicken and cook on medium high for 8-10 minutes, until chicken is cooked all the way through.

Next, add the beans and corn. Add lime juice (I used about 1 tbsp, but I'd recommend adding 1 tsp at a time until you're happy with the taste). Simmer for 5 minutes. Salt and pepper, to taste. Simmer for another five minutes and serve hot.

You'll want to use a slotted spoon to serve, so you can avoid the excess broth. I eat this plain in a bowl, but if you're looking for a more filling bowl, you can serve this over brown rice. Maybe with a little mexican cheese or sour cream. Nom nom nom. :)

To store, pour the chili through a colander to drain it and then put it in a sealed tupperware container. It will keep for about a week. Deliciously!