BBQ Beef Tenderloin Teriyaki with Arugula, Crispy Brussel Sprouts, Asian Pear and Avocado Salad

We don't often have red meat so when we do, I like to splurge and buy a really good beef tenderloin.  I'm a stickler for not over cooking mine so my husband Dave has learned that rare means "almost walking". The teriyaki sauce for this tender beef tenderloin is something I always have in the fridge, ready to drown or marinate on any meat or poultry.  We've also been on a Paleo kick so I made a really hearty salad for this on the side and love the crunchiness of the brussel sprouts combined with the sweetness of the apples. The dressing comes from my mom's Chinese Chicken Salad dressing that I make a double recipe of and store in the refrigerator as well. It's all from scratch but won't take half the time if you already have the teriyaki sauce and the dressing ready to go. Teriyaki Sauce

Here's my recipe for a simple teriyaki sauce that you can keep in your refrigerator for weeks (if it lasts that long!) - [embed]http://wp.me/p1L4Tl-N[/embed]

BBQ Beef Tenderloin Teriyaki 

Ingredients:

2-3 beef tenderloin steaks

1-2 tbsp good olive oil

salt and pepper

flour

Directions:

Heat BBQ to high about 375 degrees.  Sprinkle salt & freshly cracked pepper on both sides of your tenderloin.  Drizzle with olive oil on both sides to coat. Sprinkle with flour on both sides. Don't season too early as the salt will draw out the meat juices and make the steaks soggy. It's a common myth to let steaks come to room temperature first - they should be cold when put on the grill. Put them on the grill and turn the heat down to medium high.

Try to only flip your steaks once if you want a crispy outer crust and don't slice them to see if they are done. The best way to check for doneness is to poke a steak with your finger. A rare steak is soft and squishy; a medium rare steak is yielding; medium is gently yielding; medium-well is firm; and well-done is hard and springy.

Take your steaks off of the grill when they've reached the desired tenderness you'd like. Allow the steak to rest for a juicier steak.

I love these steak myths that you should read if you have the time -  [embed]http://lifehacker.com/5571192/seven-myths-about-grilling-a-steak[/embed]

After the steak has rested, slice up the steak into thin pieces, spoon over some delicious and warm teriyaki sauce and sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds over the top for garnish. Ready to serve!

Arugula, Crispy Brussel Sprouts, Asian Pear and Avocado Salad 

I like to put this salad together right before serving so the lettuce doesn't wilt too much from the warmth of the brussel sprouts and the brussel sprouts stay nice and crispy.  Dress right before serving as well.

Ingredients:

1 bag of organic arugula (washed and damped dry)

1 small bag of whole brussel sprouts

1 avocado

1/2 asian pear or fuji apple

2 tbs olive oil

salt and pepper

Dressing:

I use the same dressing I make with my Chinese Chicken salad except that I add a little balsamic vinegar to give it a little extra tang.  Either way, the dressing is great on any salad.  Here's the recipe.

Directions:

Heat an oven 400 degrees.  After cutting the tough tip off, slice each brussel sprout into thin slices. Lay on an aluminum lined pan.  Drizzle some olive oil and salt and pepper over the sprouts and toss them to incorporate. Lay out evenly on your pan but don't crowd. Make sure they can bake separated without touching one another. Bake in the oven for about 10-15 minutes, tossing in between until you get crispy, crunchy pieces. don't be afraid to char them a bit.  While your brussel sprouts are cooking, julienne 1/2 of a fuji apple.

In a medium salad bowl, add your arugula, your toasty brussel sprouts, apple and cut up avocado.  Dress right before serving.  I served mine with a roasted sweet potato as well. Deelish!

Jiro Dreams of Sushi and Easy Beef Wrapped Asparagus!

I've had a bit of a hiatus from blogging recently due to some good and bad news.  Good news is that I am in my 2nd trimester of pregnancy!  Bad news is that I've had an aversion to most food and especially to cooking for the last 4 months.  This has made it a bit difficult to speak about great Japanese recipes from a hands-on perspective, so I decided to write about recipes that I already know are great!  I also wanted to share with you a great movie based on one of the most famous Japanese sushi chefs in Japan called "Jiro Dreams of Sushi".   The recipe will follow after my movie plug and is courtesy of a cookbook my mom and her friends developed called "Les Dames".  It's a special request by one of my blog followers, so here you go!  I aim to please. "Jiro Dreams of Sushi" is a documentary based on 85-year-old sushi master Jiro Ono, his business in the basement of a Tokyo office building, and his relationship with his son and eventual heir, Yoshikazu.   It's not a mainstream film so you'll have to seek it out at a smaller theater.  I loved it because it really gives you an appreciation for the art of sushi making and teaches you about the culture of the Japanese.  It also makes you realize that fish sold for sushi are being over-fished because of the mainstream popularity of sushi these days.  I personally feel that we shouldn't be seeing sushi sold at grocery stores, fast-food convenience stores or gas stations.  These fish need to be preserved and sushi should be a luxury that you pay more for to get a higher quality of fish.  Here's the trailer: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1772925/  Go and seek it out, it is such a jem and will make you want to go eat sushi immediately afterwards!

Here's the recipe....

Beef Wrapped Asparagus

This dish is perfect as an appetizer, great for watching sports or serving at parties and is even pretty good cold for a picnic or in your kids lunches.

Ingredients:

1/2 1b thinly sliced beef like sirloin, filet or kobe (your butcher should be able to slice the meat paper thin for you in a frozen state, alternatively, you may be able to find thinly sliced "sukiyaki" beef at an Asian grocery store)

12 asparagus spears, trimmed. Simply take the end of the asparagus between your thumb and forefinger and bend until it breaks.  The woody root ends of the asparagus are not edible.

olive oil

salt and pepper

teriyaki sauce - here's the shortlink for the recipe from a previous post - http://wp.me/p1L4Tl-N

Directions:

Sprinkle some olive and and salt and pepper on your asparagus spears just to coat. Roll one piece of beef around the lower part of the asparagus so that the pointy tip is still showing.  Prepare the teriyaki sauce and set aside in a shallow dish big enough to dip the spears in later. Heat a skillet to medium high and add about 1 tbsp of olive oil to coat the pan.  Quickly fry the asparagus so that the meat browns on all sides.  Do not crowd the pan, leave room between each spear so that they do not touch.  Cook in batches.  Dip each cooked spear into the teriyaki sauce bath to let soak in.  Cut each of the spears at a diagonal if serving as an appetizer to allow for smaller portions.  Otherwise just set on a serving plate.  You can heat up and drizzle more teriyaki sauce on before serving if you'd like.  Serve immediately to enjoy warm.  Just as yummy at room temp or cold.