Sautéed Beef with Onions over Creamy Polenta

How’s the weather? Are you covered with a white blanket or it’s getting warmer? We had here last week brrr weather, but this week it’s actually pretty manageable, and in upper 50’s to lower 60’s. Not bad, eh?
I hope everybody is alright from a recent stomach virus that is going around, at least around here. We were all sick and still recovering from it… and let me just say “it ain’t pretty” but knock on the wood, it’s getting better!

So let me skip that part and start talking about my fab romantic dinner…

One of my favorite easy dinners is this quick marinated, then sautéed beef with red onions over creamy and delicious polenta. It is a perfect balance of flavors and warms your heart with every bite you take.
Sometimes I would marinate Calf’s liver or Pork Tenderloins, but most of the time I used beef because it has given so many compliments to the polenta. The taste is just phenomenal! There is rosemary, sage, garlic and sliced onions with a splash of beef stock which gives you an amazing aroma to start with.

As the cold weather still creeps in, besides soups and stews this is the way to warm yourself up, and like I said it is quick that your dinner will be on the table in less than 45 minutes. Easy peasy -especially after a hard day of work you deserve quick but homey and comforting meals like this. My romantic dinner is over… and we didn’t mind extra garlic nor onion, after all, 14 years of marriage do that to you! 😀

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Sautéed Beef with Onions over Creamy Polenta

Course Main Course

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Marinade for 15 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 2

Author Sandra | Sandra's Easy Cooking

Ingredients

Marinade:

• 3 Garlic Cloves minced
• 1/2 Cup Beef Broth
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1/4 tsp. Ground Black Pepper
• 1/8 tsp. Sugar
• 1/2 Rosemary Spring
• 2-3 Sage Leaf
• Generous Squeeze of 1/2 Lemon 1-2 Tbs.
• 12-14 oz of Beef Flank Steak 340g-400g /for 2 servings, sliced into strips

Stir Fry:

• 2-3 Tbs. Oil
• 1/2 Red Onion Sliced
• 2 Garlic Cloves
• Marinated Beef Flank Steak
• 4 Tbs. Marinade
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Polenta:

• 2  cups Water or Milk
• 2 tsp. Salt or to taste
• 1.5 cup Instant/Quick-Cooking Cornmeal
• 1 Tbs. Butter
• Cheese /sour cream or Greek yogurt *if desired

Instructions

1. In a Large Ziploc bag, place all the ingredient for the marinade, mix, then add cut into strip flank steak. Mix the bag to code all the slices, then let it marinade for 15 minutes, but it could be in the fridge overnight *it will give you even richer and deeper flavor.

2. While beef is marinating, start with polenta. This is a GREAT tip how to make polenta VIDEO
3. In a medium saucepan, add water or milk, butter, and salt, then let the water/milk come close to a boil. Measure Corn Meal, then put it in a cup or small a bowl so that you will be able to add it easier in the boiling water. LOWER the HEAT. When the water is ready, slowly add the polenta while whisking quickly. Continue whisking over low heat until the polenta thickens. Turn off the heat, keep mixing and at this point you may add more butter if you wish, mix it, then add cheese if you desire/OR Sour cream/Greek yogurt etc. Set aside and cover with the lid. This is done in matters of 5 minutes.
4. Preheat the oil over high heat for stir fry, then add garlic and onion. Lower the temperature and let the oil get infused with both garlic and onion. Don't let it burn. Take the flank steak strips out of the marinade and reserve about 4 tablespoons of the marinade for the stir-fry. Let the beef strips get slightly brown color on both sides, then add marinade, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Let it cook over medium-high and under the lid until marinade/liquid evaporate almost in half (about 5 minutes). Turn the beef few more times.
5. Serve it over the creamy hot polenta with perhaps a spring of rosemary for the presentation.

Recipe Notes

You may use coarsely ground cornmeal, but it does take longer to cook! Chicken, pork, turkey can be used for this recipe instead of the beef. I used beef flank steak, but you can use any cut that you have, just make sure to marinade/cook according to the cut.

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