I know it’s been quite some time since I wrote something. Life just seems to drag you into its drama and as we grow old, it gets more and more difficult to get out of it; the post-dramatic stress sets in shortly afterwards. Anyways, this post is more about enjoying the finer things and grabbing life by its horns. Get ready to take charge people because this recipe is sure to get you out of your funk.

Chicken Steak with Stir-fried Vegetables and Potato Wedges

Ingredients for Marinating

½ kg chicken or beef
5-6 tbsp ginger (finely chopped)
1 tbsp green chilies (finely chopped)
1½ tsp salt (or to taste)

Ingredients for Steak Sauce

1 medium onion (finely chopped)
3-4 tbsp BBQ Sauce
2-3 tbsp soy sauce
1½ tbsp tomato ketchup
½ tsp mustard sauce
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp black pepper
½ tsp white pepper
1 tsp honey
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp oil
4-5 tbsp water

Ingredients for Stir-fried Vegetabes

1 carrot
50 gms peas
½ cabbage
½ zucchini
½ onion
Salt and pepper (to taste)
Any other vegetable you enjoy eating

Ingredients for Garnish

Thick onion slices
Cabbage
Fried Eggs (sunny side up)
Cheese slices
Bread Croutons (deep-fried cubes of bread – OPTIONAL)
Dried Oregano
Potato Wedges (click here for recipe)

Method for Cooking

1. If using chicken, marinate the meat using the ginger, chilies and salt for at least ½ an hour; for beef, marinate after hammering the beef for 5 to 6 hours
2. Once marinated, you can either grill the meat using some oil in a grill pan (for people who hate setting up a grill) or flame-grill it (for a more authentic taste) until tender [NOTE: I prefer a very well-done steak so choose a consistency that suits you most]
3. For the sauce, take some oil in a saucepan and add in the onion
4. Once the onion turns transparent, put in the rest of the ingredients, followed by the water, and let it cook for 5 minutes [NOTE: A sauce manufactured by different brands may vary in taste, so you might end up having a steak sauce that’s either less spicy or too sour. So here are the adjustments you might need to make according to your taste – to spice it up, add some chili/tabasco sauce, and to decrease the sourness, add some tomato ketchup]
5. Take a little oil in a pan and put in all your vegetables (the hard ones first, the soft ones a bit later)
6. Season the vegetables using some salt and pepper and take them off the flame

Method for Assembling

1. Heat the sizzle pans; if you don’t have sizzle pans for individual servings, you can use a regular pan and assemble everything in it [NOTE: Be very careful while handling a sizzle pan]
2. Once hot, put in a dash of oil, some onion slices and some cabbage leaves onto it
3. Put the cooked steak right in the center of the pan
4. Generously pour the steak sauce over it
5. Put some stir-fried vegetables on one side and the potato wedges on the other
6. Add a cheese slice on top of the steak and sprinkle some oregano
7. Finish it off with the fried egg (sunny side up)

Enjoy and do remember me when you steal all the credit!

Ciao,
Yousuf