Easy Beef & Brussels Stir-Fry - Low Carb

Happy Monday! It was a nasty, dark and dreary day here today and it rained on and off most of the day. I spent all day yesterday taking down our Christmas decorations (yeah, I know it's kind of late) so I didn't get my grocery shopping done. I stopped at Sprouts Farmers Market on my way home from work this evening and decided to let what looked good determine what I would make for dinner. I really had no plan whatsoever. Well, as luck would have it, their fresh brussels sprouts looked amazing; like REALLY amazing. So that was the basis of dinner.

I strolled over to the meat section and their ground sirloin looked awesome (as in amazeballs awesome). I picked up a beautiful sweet onion and decided I was going to make dinner with these 3 items. I frequently make a similar dish using sliced smoked chicken sausage links (Aidells) and brussels sprouts as a quick worknight meal and wondered how something similar would be using ground sirloin. I already had red bell peppers in the fridge and decided I'd add a bit of those too for a pop of sweetness, crunch and color (they are the sweet griller variety that I find at Publix and my favorite). So, with these few basic ingredients I made one of my new favorite quick meals. Hubby absolutely loved it too.

I lightly sautéed diced onion in olive oil and then added the ground beef and chopped it up and browned it over medium-high heat so it caramelized slightly for flavor. I seasoned it liberally (as in a little more than usual) with pink Himalayan sea salt and lots of freshly ground black pepper to give it some pizzazz. I trimmed and sliced up my brussels sprouts while the meat browned, stopping frequently to stir the browning meat. I added my sliced sprouts to the pan along with a bit more olive oil and stir-fried it for a couple more minutes, then added a little water, reduced the heat a bit and covered it for 5 minutes to steam and soften the sprouts a bit but not so much that they became drab green and mushy. They still had a bit of chew and bite. I added the diced red bell pepper and a bit more oil and cooked it uncovered for a couple minutes until the peppers were slightly cooked. I tasted the seasoning and added a bit more salt and pepper and served it in shallow bowls. It was so very good. I have enough leftover for my lunch tomorrow too. It was so easy and so basic. Nothing fancy but so very good. The most time consuming part was slicing up the sprouts. To save time you could buy some already sliced if you want. The easy recipe and photos are below. Enjoy!

Easy Beef and Brussels Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

3 to 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 medium sweet onion, diced
1 pound ground beef (I used sirloin)
1-1/2 pounds small to medium fresh brussels sprouts, trimmed and sliced 1/4-inch thick
1/4 cup water
1/2 red bell pepper, diced (I used red sweet griller peppers)
Salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions:

In a large wok or skillet (using a pan that has a lid that fits), add 2 tablespoons olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add diced onion and cook 1 to 2 minutes until they begin to soften slightly. Break up ground beef and drop into pan in clumps, chopping and breaking up with a large spatula or spoon as it browns along with the onions. Season with salt and pepper, to taste (I used it generously to add flavor). Add remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and sliced brussels sprouts to the pan. Turn heat up slightly and stir frequently for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the water and cover the pan; turn heat down to medium and allow to steam covered for 5 minutes. Remove lid and stir in diced red bell peppers. Cook, stirring frequently for another minute or two until peppers are crisp-tender. Add additional olive oil if desired and season to taste.