Moo Shu Beef in lettuce cups: Bok Choy Wha…?

Our first challenge:  Picking out an intriguing recipe, finding the  foreign ingredients at the supermarket, and following directions to produce an edible delight.

Below is the recipe we chose – yes, a little promiscuous for a first-time endeavor, but that’s how we roll:

Moo Shu Beef Lettuce Cups

Ingredients:
cooking spray
1 pound uncooked lean ground beef (with 7% fat)
1 cup onion, yellow, thinly sliced
2 tbsp ginger root, fresh, minced
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
2 cups bok choy, thinly sliced
1 medium sweet red pepper, thinly sliced
2 cups button mushrooms, thinly sliced (about 10 mushrooms)
2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
8 leaf bibb lettuce

Ok, so first off, what the eff is Bok Choy?  If you already know, then you should probably get off this blog , it’s not for you – this blog is for kitchen-challenged individuals.

First piece of advice: approach the supermarket with confidence, in fact, go overboard – get cocky with it.  Your list says “bok choy,” walk over to the ice cream section like it’s your job, and reach for the Choy.  No luck?  Well if you did have luck, then you’re in one crack-ridden playhouse.  After a bit of searching, we found the Bok Choy in the fresh vegtables section, by the lettuce – over where it’s cold.  Actually, as far as we can tell, Bok Choy is a fancy name for lettuce, so if you still come up short, maybe just grab some lettuce and tell yourself its the Choy.

Ginger root?  Think garlic with herpes -mmmmm, delicious…. look over by the mushrooms, you should find it.

Does anything else on this ingredient list look intimidating?  If so, then you probably have challenges that stem far beyond the kitchen.  This is our first recipe, keep up.

Ok, here are the instructions we were given:

Instructions
* Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set pan over medium-high heat. Add beef, onion, ginger and garlic; cook until beef is browned and onion is soft, breaking up meat as it cooks, about 5 to 7 minutes.

* Add bok choy, pepper, mushrooms and soy sauce; cook, stirring occasionally, until bok choy is wilted and pepper is tender-crisp, about 3 to 5 minutes.

•    Spoon about 1/2 cup of beef mixture into each lettuce leaf. Yields 2 filled leaves per serving. Serve with extra soy sauce if desired.

With the help of some booze, we found these instructions pretty self-explanatory.  Our vegetable slicing techniques could probably stand for some improvement, but we got it done.  Basically, just cut up all of your ingredients, toss the goods into a pan and cook until it appears edible… then throw your portions into lettuce leave bowls and enjoy.

Somehow, we managed to succeed, so you should be able to as well.. give it a try.  We found the finished product to be quite tasty.  Eat that **** with a fork or just shove it in your mouth like a lettuce wrap.

Below is a picture of our final product.  Post links, pictures, or comments of your own experience with this delightful dish.

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