Curry Coconut Beef with Spiced Rice.

Fragrant spices add great flavor to this easy beef curry dinner. The combination of tender beef, diced tomatoes and coconut milk creates a delicious and comforting meal. It’s served over basmati rice. This is a type of long-grain aromatic white rice. Happily, it’s available in a microwave version, which means you can make the side dish in minutes and there’s no pot to wash.

A hint about the curry powder for this dish. The curry powder sold in supermarkets is a blend of about 15 herbs, spices and seeds. This type of powder loses its flavor quickly. If you have curry powder that is more than 6 months old, buy a new one. It will add more flavor to the dish.

Helpful Hints

You can use 4 crushed garlic cloves instead of 2 teaspoons minced garlic.

You can use chopped sweet onion instead of frozen chopped onion.

A quick way to defrost the peas and onion is to place them in a sieve and run hot tap water over them.

Brown rice can be used instead of basmati.

Countdown

Prepare all ingredients

Make Rice.

Make curried beef.

Staples: canola oil, salt and black peppercorns.

CURRIED COCONUT BEEF 

3/4 pound grass-fed tenderloin

2 teaspoons canola oil

1 cup frozen diced onion

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 tablespoon mild curry powder

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 cup reduced sodium canned diced tomatoes

1 cup light coconut milk

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut beef into 3/4-to-1-inch pieces. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef and brown for about 1 minute turning them over as they brown. Remove to a plate. Add the onion, minced garlic, curry powder and turmeric and saute 1 minute, mixing spices together. Add tomatoes with their juice. Stir to combine all ingredients. Add the coconut milk and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well for 1 minute. Return beef to the skillet and toss in the sauce 1 minute to warm through. Divide in half and serve over the rice on two dinner plates. 

SPICED RICE

Microwaveable basmati rice to make 1 1/2 cups

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup frozen peas, defrosted

1 teaspoon canola oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cook rice according to package instructions. Measure 1 1/2 cups and save any remaining rice for another meal. Add cumin and peas and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Divide in half and place on 2 dinner plates.

Tribune News Service