As you may know, us living on the East Coast were just clobbered by a massive storm that was characterized as “bomb cyclone” Grayson.  Boston simultaneously experienced the highest recorded tide at the height of this storm which led to water flowing down subway stairs and inches of standing ocean water filling downtown streets where people were being rescued in inflatable boats. I’ve never seen anything like it.

With the majority of the ~14 inches of snow falling in a short period of time schools were closed on both Thursday and Friday!  As many teachers do, I whelped a cheer of joy upon seeing the call come through and I prepared for hibernation. One of my besties – also a teacher – decided to get snowed in here rather than her house. She bought the fixings for quesadillas, carnitas, a hearty brunch.

Snow days are for comfort food, for sleeping in just a bit later than normal, for playing card games, and for catching up on netflix. We did all of the above shamelessly.  

With 4 shovelers in action (minus me because I pulled a muscle in my lower back earlier in the week) we undertook a total of 9 human hours of shoveling through drifts that were over 2 feet high.

As for this beef and broccoli, we actually had this for dinner the night before the snowstorm, but I’ve been covered by too many blankets to post it until now.

A few years ago I made beef and broccoli – posted here.  (Again – take a look at the progress I’ve made with picture taking!) This recipe was tasty but this week we wanted a saucier variation. Also, the store was out of flank steak and so we lept into experimentation mode.

For this new version we used this recipe as a base and followed it closely with only a few shifts.  It was a good reminder of how easy this dish is to make! First you prep the farro and let that sit on the side.  Then, you whisk together all of the liquid ingredients to make the sauce.  The broccoli is seared first, then the sauce is added. After 2 minutes or so the sauce begins to thicken and the broccoli then goes in for about 2 more minutes.    

As a sauce/gravy lover I was pleased with the amount of sauce in this dish.  It lasted well in the fridge for lunch leftovers the next day.

Stay warm everyone!

Recipe makes about 5 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of dry farro
• 2 lbs of NY Strip steak sliced thin against the grain
• 1 cup of soy sauce
• 4 Tablespoons of cornstarch
• 6 cloves of garlic – minced
• 6 Tablespoons of sherry
• 5 tablespoons of honey
• 4 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 pinches of red pepper flakes
• 2 Tablespoons of sriracha
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger powder
• 1 cup of chicken broth
• 2 heads of broccoli

Steps and Notes:

1. Cook the farro according to the directions and set aside when done.
2. In a bowl whisk together the soy sauce, cornstarch, garlic, sherry, honey, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, sriracha, ginger powder, and chicken broth.
3. Sear the steak in a pan for about 4 minutes so that it begins to brown. Then, add the sauce to the pan with the steak mixing regularly.
4. After the sauce begins to thicken (about 1 minute) add the broccoli and cook for 2 more minutes.
5. Serve over farro.

Thoughts for Next Time:

• Do a combination of this sauce with the add-ons from my previous recipe which included water chestnuts and baby corn
• Use fresh ginger instead of powder