Orange Beef & Broccoli

Adapted from Allrecipes

This was a great Asian dish and a great use of a cheaper steak.  

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ lbs beef top sirloin, thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
• 2 Tbs frozen orange juice concentrate
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 Tbs soy sauce
• 1 cup rice
• 2 cups water
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• 2 tsp orange zest
• 3 Tbs grated fresh ginger
• 1 ½ Tbs minced garlic
• 8 broccoli florets, lightly steamed
• 1 cup oil for frying

 Directions:

• Lay beef strips out in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with paper towels.  Allow to dry in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.  In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, rice vinegar, orange juice concentrate, salt and soy sauce.  Set aside.
• Meanwhile, combine rice and water in a medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes or until rice is tender.  Add more water at the end, if necessary.
• Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat.  Toss dried beef in cornstarch to coat.  Fry in the hot oil in small batches until crispy and golden brown; set aside.  Drain all of the oil from the wok except about 1 Tbs.
• Add orange zest, ginger and garlic to the remaining oil, and cook briefly until fragrant.  Add the soy sauce mixture to the wok, bring to a boil, and cook until thick and syrupy, about 5 minutes.  Add beef, and heat through, stirring to coat.  Serve immediately over steamed rice and garnish with broccoli.