Steak Teriyaki and Potatoes in Spicy Green Chile Sauce
Some Like it Hot
Steak Teriyaki With Potatoes in Spicy Chile Sauce | Dara O’Brien
By Dara O’Brien
Creative Director, Lake Isle Press
Even when I can’t stand the heat I don’t get out of the kitchen.
Despite almost 90° heat in a kitchen without a fan or air conditioning, I recently prepared oven-roasted salmon and risotto for guests. Twice. On other hot days I baked cookies and cake; roasted chicken and pork loin; and simmered some soups. I crave hot food even on hot days, and most of the time I’ll sweat to provide it.
But I have my limits. Like most of the country, New York City, where I live, is having a heat wave. The prolonged high temperatures are starting to get to me. Not enough to drive me to cold food—oh, no, surely not—but enough to encourage me to find ways to keep cool while cooking.
Cue my Cook-Zen pot. The Cook-Zen is a little covered pot designed especially for microwave cooking. Microwave ovens cook food quickly, but just as important, they do so without heating up the kitchen. Microwaving with the Cook-Zen shares many of the benefits of using an Instant Pot, only it’s smaller and there’s no steam to release.
Today I prepared two dishes in my Cook-Zen: Steak Teriyaki and Potatoes in Spicy Green Chile Sauce. Since I wanted to serve them together, I needed to keep one warm while the other cooked. Because they are each ready in minutes, that was easy to do.
Both recipes are by Machiko Chiba, the creator of the Cook-Zen pot, from her book “The Cook-Zen Way to Eat: Microwaving Healthy and Delicious Meals in Minutes,” published by Lake Isle Press.
I prepped everything for both dishes before I started any of the cooking. Since the recipe specifies cooking the potatoes before you peel them, I put them in first so they could cool while I made the sauce. I used a sirloin tip for the teriyaki and cooked it in two batches: one for 4 minutes and one for 3:30. Both were good, but I preferred the rarer portion.
Most of us have microwaves and they are probably one of the more under-utilized tools in the kitchen. We use them to defrost, reheat, or make popcorn. But they they make crisp veggies, poach or steam fish or chicken nicely, and mdeliver perfect rice and speedy sauces. These potatoes cooked in five minutes with no water and were perfect. The sauce, which didn’t dirty another pot, cooked in three minutes. The steak was tender and tasty and ready in a flash. And the only thing that got hot was the food.
The Cook-Zen Microwave Pot
Steak Teriyaki
Click here for printable recipe.
2 servings
Cook Time: 6½ minutes
INGREDIENTS
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
½ to ¾ pound sirloin steak, thinly sliced
3 to 4 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon mirin
1 to ½ tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons water
PREPARATION
Place the olive oil and garlic in the Cook-Zen. Heat on medium-high, uncovered, for 40 seconds.
Add the beef, soy sauce, mirin, sugar, and black pepper Cover and heat on medium-high for 4 to 5 minutes with the steam holes set to "close." Set the beef aside, leaving the sauce inside the Cook-Zen.
In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch and water. Add the cornstarch mixture to the sauce in the Cook-Zen. Stir well. Heat on medium-high, uncovered, for 30 seconds. Whisk the sauce thoroughly. Pour over the beef before serving.
Potatoes in Spicy Green Chile Sauce
Click here for printable recipe.
2 servings
Cook Time: 9 minutes
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 large Japanese green chile peppers or jalapeño peppers, seeds removed and finely chopped (see Note)
I plum tomato, finely chopped
¼ medium onion, finely chopped
Pinch of sugar
Pinch of salt and black pepper
1 large potato, any kind
PREPARATION
Place the olive oil, garlic, peppers, tomato, and onion in the Cook-Zen; mix well. Cover and heat on medium-high for 3 minutes with the steam holes set to "close." Add a pinch of sugar, salt, and pepper, and mix well. Transfer the sauce to a medium mixing bowl.
Place the potato, unpeeled, in the Cook-Zen. Cover and heat on medium-high for 5 to 6 minutes with the steam holes set to "close." After heating, peel the skin and cut the potatoes into 1-inch cubes. While the potatoes are still hot, add to the sauce. Mix gently.
Note: Be careful when working with chiles; the natural oils can burn. Don't touch your eyes, and wash your hands immediately after handling.
THE COOK-ZEN POT IS AVAILABLE THROUGH AMAZON.COM
Recipe from “The Cook-Zen Way to Eat: Microwaving Healthy and Delicious Meals in Minutes” by Machiko Chiba, Lake Isle Press, 2010
Steak Teriyaki Recipe and
Potatoes in Spicy Green Chile Sauce Recipe
from “The Cook-Zen Way to Eat: Microwaving Healthy and Delicious Meals in Minutes”
by Machiko Chiba, Lake Isle Press, 2010
In THE COOK-ZEN WAY TO EAT: Microwaving Healthy and Delicious Meals in Minutes, the follow-up to THE COOK-ZEN COOKBOOK (also Lake Isle Press), Machiko Chiba has returned with more incredible Cook-Zen recipes made in minutes. From international favorites such as Asian-Style Spareribs, Thai Green Curry Chicken, and Steak Teriyaki, to all-American classics such as Chili Con Carne, Classic Mashed Potatoes, and Barbecued Beans—entire meals can be made in just one pot. Whether you wish to entertain with Scallop Pilaf and Mussels Steamed with Wine and Garlic or have an easy night in with a bowl of Corn Chowder, you’ll find the perfectly simple and healthy solution in THE COOK-ZEN WAY TO EAT.
Featuring many inspiring and elegant photographs plus simple step-by-step instructions for how to use the Cook-Zen, Machiko Chiba’s microwave cook pot. Its patented design locks in moisture and distributes heat evenly, producing dishes you’d never dream of making in a microwave. Like a pressure cooker, the Cook-Zen pot reduces cooking times to mere minutes for healthy, delicious meals made simply and quickly.
ALSO FROM THE COOK-ZEN WAY TO EAT:
Japanese Beef Rice Bowl (Gyudon)
Microwave Thai Green Curry Chicken
Spiced Pork Tenderloin with Potatoes and Onions