Wednesday, December 2, 2020

Hong Kong Oxtail Borscht

 
There's Russian borscht with beets and Hong Kong borscht with beef/tomato/cabbage. I abhor the first and love the second. My old co-worker used to try to get me to eat the Russian borscht whenever she brought some in for lunch and I always refused.


However, I find HKB very comforting. Sometimes they give out little cups of it at Hong Kong cafes, though those are mainly broth and a few wisps of cabbage. If you were truly lucky, you'd get a random tiiiiiinnnyyyyyy slice of beef.


No matter how much I've scaled this recipe down, it is a COMMITMENT. Like, soup for 8-12 people, depeding on if it's eaten as a meal or as a side. Considering how much time is spent preparing it though ... makes sense to make a lot.

Hong Kong Oxtail Borscht
Adapted from Christine's Recipes
Serves 8-12

Large pot boiling water for blanching
Approx 5 lbs oxtail (can use strips beef brisket or beef bones for soup)
1 can beef broth (approx 2 cups or 500ml)
10 cups water

2 Tbsp olive oil
3 stalks celery, 1/4 sliced
3 medium red potatoes, 1/2" cubed
1 onion, 1/2" diced
3 tomatoes, 1/4" diced
1 carrot, sliced into coins
1/2 head small cabbage, 1/2" cubed
2 cloves garlic, chopped
10 to 15 white peppercorns
3 bay leaves
3 Tbsp tomato paste
Zest from 1 lemon
Lemon juice/zest, sugar, kosher salt, white pepper to taste

Heat a large pot of water over high heat. Once boiling, blanch oxtails (or whatever beef you're using) in boiling water for approximately 3 minutes to remove blood and impurities. Let cool slightly and trim any fat away from the meat.

In the largest pot you have (and I mean largest), combine oxtails, beef broth and 10 cups water. Bring to a boil and then lower heat and simmer for 90 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté garlic until aromatic. Add onion and cook until translucent, approx 5 minutes. Add celery and cook for another 3 minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables and sauté until softened, approx 15-20 minutes.

After the 90 minutes, combine all the vegetables into the stock. Add tomato paste, whole white peppercorns and bay leaves. You can tie the peppercorns into a cheesecloth for easy removal, if desired. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for another 60 minutes.

Grate lemon zest into the soup. Season well with kosher salt, sugar, white pepper and lemon juice to taste.

Wednesday, November 11, 2020

Split Pea Soup (the best!)


Split pea soup might not be the sexiest of soups but it's the one you want to crawl into bed with on a cold, cold winter night. You know, winter in Los Angeles and the "cold snap" of this week - high of 65degreesF, low of 42degreesF. SO CRAZY COMPARED TO THE REST OF THE MIDWEST OR EAST COAST. Hey, we pay a "weather tax" for this glorious-ness.

Split Pea Soup
Serves 6
Adapted from Ina Garten

1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
Glug of good olive oil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 cups medium-diced carrots
1 cup medium-diced red boiling potatoes, unpeeled
1 pound dried split green peas, rinsed
8 cups chicken stock (low sodium if possible)

In a large stockpot on medium heat, saute the onions and garlic with the olive oil, dried oregano, salt, and pepper until the onions are translucent, approx 5-7 minutes. Add the carrots, red potatoes, split peas, and chicken stock.

Bring to a boil, then skim off all the foam that rises to the top. Place a wooden spoon across the top of the pot to keep it from boiling over (I have no idea why this works). Simmer uncovered for approximately 1 1/2 hours. Stir frequently to keep the solids from burning on the bottom – really don’t ignore this step! It'll look super watery at first but as it cooks it gets super thick and creamy. 

Taste for salt and pepper. Serve hot.

Thursday, September 24, 2020

Moelleux of Fruits (Almond Cake)

 


Take a look at this cake. It's so versatile. It was SO GOOD and SO EASY to put together. I was shocked at how good it was! Make it with whatever fruits you have in your refrigerator - the original recipe called for stone/summer fruits but I used the figs from our backyard. 


Just a disclaimer: figs release lots of syrupy juices. Do not crowd them. I did that with a tart and it looked gorgeous before baking ... but it came out a wet mess! I can't wait to try this with pears, peaches, nectarines, a handful of berries, etc. 

Feel free to make adjustments to the almond meal and flours. The original recipe called for 3/4 cup almond meal and 1/2 cup all-purpose flour but I ran out of almond meal ... and then I ran out of all-purpose flour ... so I made do with that I had. But the ratio was fantastic. The sugar on top created a nice caramelization on the top, esp at the edges of the cake.


Moelleux of Fruits (Almond Cake)
Adapted from David Lebovitz

6 figs (or other fruits; enough to half and slice into 3/4-1" thick wedges)
1/4 cup almond meal (I ground my own almonds - 1 cup almonds with 1 Tbsp sugar)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup granulated sugar
4 ounces (1 stick) salted butter, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract (or 1/2 tsp almond extract)
1 Tbsp coarse granulated brown sugar, such as tubinado sugar (or in my case, three packages of Sugar in the Raw which I took from a coffee shop)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8-inch springform pan with butter or non-stick spray.

In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the different flours, baking powder and granulated sugar with a silicon spatula. Add the room temperature butter and mix it in with the spatula until it's broken up into little pieces and thoroughly mixed - it should look shaggy and kind of like wet sand with small bunched chunks in it. Stir in the eggs and vanilla extract. It's fine if there are small pieces of butter visible.

Pour the batter into the pan and smooth out the top with the silicon spatula. Arrange the fruit prettily on top of the cake - if using stone fruits or pears, place the wedges of fruit on their sides in concentric circles, snugly against each other. Press them gently into the batter, about 1/4 inch down. Avoid putting the fruits right up against the sides of the pan, to leave some room for the batter to rise.

Sprinkle the coarse sugar evenly over the top and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean, approx 1 hour. Start checking around the 45 minute parm. Remove from the oven and set on a cooling rack. If any fruit juices have bubbled up and stuck to the sides of the pan, run a knife around the outside of the cake, which will help it release later.

After 15 minutes, then remove the springform portion while the cake is still warm.

Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Pork & Napa Cabbage Dumplings


So I've never made dumplings at home before! My grandma always kicked us out of the kitchen and wrapped all 1000 of them herself (give or take on the number of dumplings). I've only made wontons before (and it was almost ten years ago), shaping them into "nurse hats" the way my grandma taught me. It's pretty calming and meditative to wrap them too.


The complaint that my mom and brother had with my wontons were that the meat was "too hard" instead of being soft and tender. Looking back, I probably should have added more water to the pork, and some vegetables. My grandma told me her recipe in that classic way - get some pork hind butt meat, make sure there's enough fat, add some ginger and white pepper, make sure you add some water, take four chopsticks and stir clockwise, then wrap your dumplings. SMH.

I scoured the internets to look for a bunch of recipes, then Frankenstein-ed something together. Feel free to change things around but make sure there is a 40% ratio of meat to vegetable and a 5:8 ratio of meat to water (LOL now I sound like my grandma, but with just vague numbers).


I also didn't try to make my own skins, but that's also something you can do if you want. There is a recipe for dumpling skins here. It's definitely easy to buy them (freeze whatever you have left over for the next wrapping session) and keep in mind ... dumpling/potsticker skins are the same (round), wonton skins are different (square).


I need to learn how to pleat dumplings the "gyoza" way ... these were done by M and I thought he would do different than the mash-in-half-then-pleat method haha

Pork & Napa Cabbage Dumplings
Makes approx 35

Napa or regular cabbage
2 tsp sea salt

Chop the cabbage into tiny pieces, like almost-minced. Season with 2 tsp salt and let it sit for 10 minutes to draw out the water. Scrape into a paper towel or into a kitchen towel and then squeeze out all the water possible. Measure the weight and use 40% more ground pork than the amount of cabbage and adjust the measurements below

150 grams dehydrated cabbage
210 grams seasoned ground pork
1/2 tsp sea salt
50-60 milliliters water
Pinch white pepper powder
1/2 tsp white or dark sesame oil
1 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp grated ginger
One finely chopped green or spring onion

Mix all ingredients thoroughly together with a spoon. Don't overwork the meat mixture or it will become tough. The vegetables and water should make the meat "soft" for the dumplings. Let the mixture sit for an hour to marry the flavors, then fill and pleat the wrappers in the form you like best.

Monday, June 15, 2020

Fresh Tomato & Almond Pasta Sauce


I wasn't quite sure what to think when I came across a recipe for a fresh tomato blended pasta sauce. But I had a ton of basil left over from my Thao Family Farms CSA box and wanted to do something with very little cooking in this heat. And optimally, as little dishes as possible (even though I don't do dishes in this household).


Don't let the photo fool you, this sauce was fantastic! And required just a food processor and a pot.

Fresh Tomato & Almond Pasta Sauce
Serves 4

1 lb pasta of choice
2 large cloves of garlic, chopped
1 pint small tomatoes, any kind (I used grape)
1/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds
1/2 cup fresh basil (you can mix basil and parsley)
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 olive oil

Optional (since you'll need another pan): toast the almonds in a dry pan over low heat until they're golden and smell good. It bring out the flavor of the nuts more and adds to the dish.

Cook pasta according to package directions. While it's boiling, put the tomatoes, almonds, herbs, salt and Parmesan cheese in a food processor and puree. Scrape down the food processor bowl and turn it back on; then slowly drizzle the olive oil into the spout until the sauce comes together. Taste for seasoning and add extra salt, if necessary.

Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce. Garnish with additional Parmesan and shredded basil.

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Rigatoni with Eggplant and Tomato Puree



Just for the record, I did not put the pasta into this bowl - that's why it looks so messy. But the taste of it was fantastic. We all loved it and 100% would make it again. The sauce consist of pureed eggplant, tomatoes, garlic and basil. Different than usual tomato sauce and so much flavor!

Rigatoni with Eggplant and Tomato Puree
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Serves 4

1 medium Italian eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
5 cloves garlic, peeled
2 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3/4 tsp red pepper flakes (adjust to taste)
1 lb rigatoni pasta
1/2 cup basil leaves, roughly chopped
3 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup basil leaves, julienned

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

 Spread the eggplant, tomatoes, garlic, 2.5 Tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper out in an even layer on the baking sheet; toss thoroughly to combine. Roast in the oven until the vegetables are tender and the eggplant is golden and slightly charred, about 35 minutes.

In the meantime, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until just before al dente, approximately 8-10 minutes depending on the pasta. Reserve one cup of pasta water, drain the pasta and return it to the pot.

Transfer the roasted vegetables to a food processor or blender. Add the basil leaves and 3 Tbps olive oil. Blend until almost smooth. My food processor is small, so I had to do this in two batches, splitting the olive oil, basil and vegetables in half each time.

Mix the pureed sauce and 1/2 cup pasta water with the rigatoni thoroughly and cook everything together over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Add more pasta cooking water if necessary to loosen the sauce, about 1/4 cup at a time.

Turn off the heat and mix in the Parmesan and additional basil.

* optional to add ricotta salata instead of Parmesan and/or 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

Thursday, June 4, 2020

Crispy Chickpeas, Summery Squashes, Garlic Yogurt, Herbs


There is a lot going on in the world right now. In the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the police brutality/violence that senselessly killed George Floyd has taken the world by storm. Protests against systemic racism abound in the streets, which are long overdue - both from people around us and from law enforcement and government.

The only thing we can hope is that real change will come about from this. I've already donated to the ACLU and am researching other organizations to donate to as well, so we can do our part to push this movement forward.

Crispy Chickpeas, Summery Squashes, Garlic Yogurt, Herbs
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Serves 2

1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 large garlic clove, grated
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large lemon, zested and then halved
2 small summer squash, thinly sliced (or zucchini, or both)
1/3 cup chopped fresh mint, basil, parsley, or a mix

Pat chickpeas dry on a few layers of paper towels, making sure you roll them around. I generally do this early and leave the sitting out so they can additionally air-dry. Stir together garlic, yogurt, and a couple pinches of salt. Spread to cover most of bottom of two plates.

Heat three tablespoons of olive oil in a medium-large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chickpeas and cook until golden and crispy, stirring to ensure they color evenly, about 7-8 minutes. Transfer them to a paper towel to drain briefly, then season while hot with lemon zest, sea salt, and pepper.

Heat the last tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high in the same pan. Add the squash/zucchini and leave it there until browned underneath (it takes a few minutes), turning occasionally and repeating the don’t-move-until-browned pause until the squash/zucchini is tender. Season well with salt.

Slide zucchini onto prepared yogurt. Drizzle hot squash/zucchini with lemon. Distribute half of chickpeas on top of each squash/zucchini portion. Finish with a sprinkle of fresh herbs.

Thursday, May 7, 2020

Sesame Miso Donabe


The weather is quickly warming up for Southern California but it's been difficult to stop making this sesame miso donabe! IT'S SO GOOD. We started making it when COVID-19 shut the entire world down and we ordered a CSA box to help some local farms who had lost their restaurant contracts stay afloat. The leafy greens were perfect in donabe.


That box was $25, which is a steal for how fresh the vegetables are! When I buy greens from the market, they usually last about a week. One of those Bloomsdale spinach bundles lasted THREE WEEKS before I got to it and it wasn't rotting at all!



This donabe (or you can make it in a regular pot) is totally adaptable with whatever vegetables or thin-sliced meat you have on hand (or seafood). Most of the time when I've made this, it's been totally vegetarian because it was the easiest, and we wanted to use as much of the CSA vegetables as possible. The most important thing is the soup base.

Sesame Miso Donabe
Adapted from Just One Cookbook
Serves 4

3 Tbsp white sesame seeds
6 cups water
1 Tbsp Hon-dashi
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 dried shitake mushrooms
3-4 Tbsp miso paste

Vegetable suggestions:
Spinach
Bok choy
Tokyo turnips
Daikon
Green onions
Assorted mushrooms
Tofu, fish (cut into 1" chunks), shrimp, any shabu shabu meats

Toast the white sesame seeds in a small pan over low heat (no oil or anything required). Make sure it doesn't burn! Grind with a mortar and pestle, not too fine.

Boil the water with the Hon-dashi, garlic and dried mushrooms. Add the tofu and hard vegetables (daikon, carrots, turnips, etc), simmer for 5 minutes. Add leafy greens and quicker cooking vegetables (green onions, mushrooms, spinach, etc), simmer for two minutes.

At this point you can serve hot with ponzu sauce as an option. If you have any seafood/meats, add them now and simmer for three minutes, then serve. The seafood/meats will continue to cook in the hot broth.

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

Braised Chicken Thighs with Lemon, Olives, Onions


Braising chicken thighs is amazing easy AND one-pot, which is awesome at a time like this when we're stuck in a quarantine. I never realized how many dishes I used when I'm by myself at home. How did two people use five cups throughout the day, just drinking water? What's wrong with us!?

Once you have this recipe down, it's so easy to interchange ingredients to make a whole new dish. Put potatoes or carrots instead of olives! Maybe de-glaze with white/red wine vinegar instead of lemons for acidity. Add cherry tomatoes. The possibilities are endless.

Braised Chicken Thighs with Lemon, Olives, Onions
Serves 4-6

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
A bunch of garlic cloves (10, 12, you choose)
2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds discarded
2 Tbsp tablespoons fresh oregano leaves
1 cup mixed Greek or green olives
Juice of 1 lemon

Remove the chicken from the fridge at least 20 minutes before cooking to bring it more to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Season the chicken generously on both sides with salt and pepper.

In a large ovenproof pan or Dutch oven (able hold all the chicken in a single layer), heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken skin-side down, and sear until golden brown. Add the garlic cloves to the pan and flip the thighs over. Cook until the garlic is fragrant and has gotten a little brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the chicken/garlic from the pan and set aside.

With the pan still hot, add the onions, lemon slices and oregano, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until the onions have wilted and the brown bits on the bottom of the pan have loosened, 6 to 8 minutes. Nestle the thighs skin-side up in the onion mixture. Add the garlic, olives, and any juices that have accumulated from the chicken resting plate. Squeeze lemon juice over everything and transfer the pan to the oven. Bake for 40-50 minutes. Scatter fresh oregano leaves over the top to serve.

Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Carrot Soup, Tahini Lemon Drizzle, Crispy Chickpeas


Lots of soup weather happening right now. And lots of quarantine too. The world has been pretty crazy and since it's been awhile since I've updated, the COVID-19 lock down of basically most of the United States has been a huge change for everyone. California was the first state to go into lock down for the nation (first San Francisco, then Los Angeles) and today is officially the 23rd day for Los Angeles. I'm going to recap some items that I've seen on different forms of social media at the end of this post, just so there's a weird form of documentation for this crazy time.

Due to some mass panic buying throughout the beginning/middle of March, we had to adjust with some of the recipes that we've been making. A lot of basics were cleaned out (rice, eggs, flour, onions, potatoes, garlic, pasta, dried beans, etc) - plus, toilet paper and any/all sanitizing items were gone (though that has nothing to do with cooking!).

This soup was one of the things that I made earlier in March, from Smitten Kitchen. The use of a ton of carrots and very little else makes this a great, healthy soup. The crispy chickpeas and tahini lemon drizzle are optional, if you don't have them on hand. A dollop of sour cream or yogurt might be nice in a pinch.

Carrot Soup, Tahini Lemon Drizzle, Crispy Chickpeas
adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Serves 4-6

2 Tbps olive oil
2 lbs carrots, peeled, diced/coined
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp regular table salt
Aleppo pepper or red pepper flakes
4 cups chicken broth

Crispy chickpeas:
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained, dried
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground cumin

Tahini Lemon Drizzle:
3 Tbps tahini paste
3-4 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp water

Heat olive oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add all the soup ingredients, with the exception of the broth, and sauté until they begin to brown, about 15 minutes. Add broth and stir around to mix thoroughly. Cover pot with lid and simmer until carrots are tender, stirring occasionally, about 25-30 minutes.

Heat your oven to 425 degrees F. Toss chickpeas to coat evenly with olive oil, salt and cumin. Spread them on a baking sheet and roast until they’re browned and crisp, tossing after 10 minutes and then every 5 minutes thereafter. It can take anywhere from 10-30 minutes for them to become crispy. Taste as you go to check!

In a small bown, whisk together tahini, lemon juice, salt and water until smooth and yogurt-like. If more liquid is needed to thin it, you can add a little more lemon juice or water, until you get your desired consistency.


~~ THIS IS OUR COVID-19 PANDEMIC WORLD TODAY ~~
First case reported to World Health Organization on December 31, 2019
Declared as an international public health emergency on January 30, 2020
Declared as an international pandemic on March 11, 2020

  • Gas prices have gone to as low as $2.50 for Los Angeles
  • School cancelled for the rest of the year. Students and teachers are adapting to distance learning.
  • Parents feel what it’s like to home school their children while trying to work and trying to feed them 3 meals a day and 2 snacks.
  • Social distancing measures are on the rise. Stay at least 6 feet away from others.
  • Tape on the floors at grocery stores and others to help distance shoppers from each other.
  • Limited number of people inside stores, therefore, lineups outside the store doors.
  • Non-essential stores and businesses are mandated to be closed. Essential services need to carry a letter to explain why they're going into work, in case they are stopped.
  • Parks, trails, entire cities locked up.
  • Entire sports seasons - cancelled.
  • Summer Olympics of 2020 in Japan - postponed.
  • Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events - cancelled.
  • Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings - cancelled.
  • No masses, churches are closed. Services are streamed.
  • No gatherings of 50 or more, then 20 or more, now 10 or more.
  • Don't socialize with anyone outside of your home.
  • Children's outdoor play parks are closed.
  • Racism and hate crimes again Asian Americans.
  • Shortage of masks, gowns, gloves for our front-line workers.
  • Shortage of ventilators for the critically ill.
  • Panic buying - have no toilet paper, no disinfecting supplies, no paper towels, no laundry soap, no hand sanitizer, no baby products.
  • Shelves are bare - dried beans, pasta, yeast, flour, eggs
  • Manufacturers, distilleries and other businesses switch their lines to help make visors, masks, hand sanitizer and PPE.
  • Government closed international borders to all non-essential travel.
  • Low domestic travel. Tons of flights cancelled and some flights with just one passenger.
  • Fines are established for breaking the rules ($1000, misdemeanor, removal of non-essential business licenses/utilities)
  • Stadiums and recreation facilities open up for the overflow of COVID-19 patients.
  • Press conferences daily from the President and the state governors. Daily updates on new cases, recoveries, and deaths.
  • Government sending stimulus package to most Americans.
  • People are wearing masks and gloves outside. California is requiring masks to be worn at anytime outside, as of April.
  • Essential service workers and medical field workers are afraid to go to work and to go home to their families.

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Cast Iron Steak with Spring Vegetables


Steak, it's what's for dinner. And what a glorious steak this was. I can't ever eat an entire steak anymore, so I usually just buy one and split it with M (just like at a fancy steakhouse!). I think after a few slices, I'm done and he can happily eat the rest. This meal was so good - one skillet, minimal cleanup, lots of veggies, amazing crust on the steak. I didn't think the cast iron pan would be capable but it was fantastic.


Since spring is coming up, this is a great transitional dish. I made this months ago but had gotten some carrots at the local farmers market, which I roasted with red onions while the steak was being prepared. Though most of the country is in lockdown mode right now with COVID-19 on the loose and steak might be hard to find (along with rice, pasta, toilet paper, bottled water, hand sanitizer, etc) ... save this dish as a celebratory meal once all of this craziness is over.

Cast Iron Steak with Spring Vegetables
Adapted from Bon Appetit
Serves 2

Boneless ribeye steak or New York strip steak, patted dry
5 garlic cloves (1 clove grated, 4 cloves thinly sliced)
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp honey
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp olive oil
5 green onions, thinly sliced
1 10oz bag frozen peas
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed, cut into 1" pieces

Season steak generously with salt and pepper. Use more salt than you'd think you'd need.

Whisk together the grated garlic, Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, honey, cayenne pepper, 1/4 cup olive oil and 1 Tbsp water until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper until it tastes great. Set aside.

Heat a medium cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Rub steak all over with 1 Tbsp oil and cook, turning exactly every 2 minutes, until medium-rare, about 8-10 minutes depending on the thickness of the steak. Make sure to get the fat cap along the side at the end, using the tongs to hold the steak up on its side. Transfer steak to a plate to rest. Pour off oil from skillet, leaving crispy bits behind.

Heat remaining 1 Tbsp oil in same skillet over low heat. Add sliced garlic cloves and most of the green onions (save some for garnish) and cook, stirring often, until translucent and softened, about 3 minutes. Add peas and a splash of water and cook until peas are tender, about 3 minutes. Finally, add asparagus; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until asparagus is just tender, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Slice steak, which has had ample time to rest, and arrange prettily in the skillet over the vegetables Drizzle with some mustard sauce, garnish with reserved green onions. Serve with additional mustard sauce on the side.