I learnt so much from interviewing Libby for yesterday’s post that I asked her to write a guest post for this week’s ‘what went down in my kitchen last night’.

I’ve mentioned before that I’m a terrible sticky beak when it comes to other people’s cooking habits. Even more fascinating is finding out what an easy dinner looks like for gluten-free/peanut-free/dairy-free/egg-free kids. You can’t just slap together some pasta, a quick vegetable omelette or a chocolate Yogo for dinner (ahem…not that I’ve ever given my kid chocolate for dinner). You have to be creative. Here’s a meal Libby often cooks for her family on a weeknight.

Sesame Beef Stirfry

Libby: This is an easy and quick meal using ‘normal’ ingredients that is suitable for people allergic to nuts, gluten, dairy and egg. So it is a great one to keep in case you are having anyone over for dinner! My kids enjoyed the flavours and ate most of the vegetables – I made sure that the ones I chose were what they would be likely to eat.

Here’s the recipe from Taste.com

400g beef stir-fry strips
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2cm piece ginger, finely grated
1 carrot, peeled, cut into thin strips
115g baby corn, halved lengthways
150g green beans, trimmed
2 tablespoons Chang’s oyster sauce
2 tablespoons fish sauce
3 teaspoons caster sugar
steamed jasmine rice, to serve
Combine beef and sesame seeds in a bowl. Toss to coat.

Heat a wok or frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil. Swirl to coat. Add half the beef mixture. Stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes or until browned. Remove to a plate. Repeat with remaining beef mixture. Set aside. Add remaining oil, garlic and ginger  to wok. Stir-fry for 1 minute or until aromatic. Add carrot, corn and beans. Stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Combine oyster sauce, fish sauce and sugar in a bowl. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Add to wok. Return beef mixture and any juices to wok. Stir-fry for a further 2 minutes or until beef is heated through. Serve with rice.

My adaptions: I added some broccoli I had already blanched in the water I was prepping for the rice, and celery cut into thin strips. I probably didn’t put in as much ginger and garlic, but it was still tasty. Chang’s oyster sauce is gluten free (it does say ‘wheat extract’ in the ingredients list, but it also claims ‘gluten free’ so I assume the extract doesn’t involve the gluten protein). I didn’t use baby corn, but cut some corn off the cob. You could remove the sesame seeds if someone is allergic to them. I used blade steak and made sure I didn’t over cook it.

It was so tender and delicious!

Thanks for sharing, Libby. Every Wednesday I publish a post about what I cooked for dinner last night. Now over to you. What went down in your kitchen last night?