Wok Wednesdays | Chinese Peruvian Stir-Fried Filet Mignon ~ Lomo Saltado

WW wokking through Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge
by Grace Young

Matt Lardie and Grace Young, our incredible, amazing leaders, picked a special celebration stir-fry to mark the third year anniversary of stir-frying through this wondrous book!

I can't believe it has been three years already, and our 70th recipe (if I counted correctly) to date! It seems like we just begun.

This recipe is a bit more indulgent then past recipes we have made, and takes a bit more preparation time. But, oh so worth it!

There was one elusive ingredient for this recipe. The ají amarillo pepper. It's a sweet, hot yellow pepper, favored in Peruvian dishes.

You may be thinking what does a popular Peruvian recipe have to do with a Chinese stir-fry? Lomo Saltado was actually created by the Chinese who immigrated to Peru.

I did an online search and found a store a few cities over from me that said they carried them. However, when I arrived, they only had dried peppers or paste, and so that is what I purchased - originally.

A few days later when I was reading the recipe again, Grace mentions that Luis, the chef who showed her how to make this recipe, uses frozen peppers from a local Mexican market. She also mentioned he lived in a city that was just a hop, skip, and a jump away from me! Once again, I was on a mission.

I found a store just five minutes away from me that carried the frozen peppers! Score!

Bowl 1: Filet mignon
Bowl 2: Garlic
Bowl 3: Salt, pepper
Bowl 4: Tomatoes, red onion
Bowl 5: Soy sauce, red wine vinegar
Bowl 6: Sugar
Bowl 7: Ají amarillo peppers
Bowl 8: Cilantro
Bowl 9: Potatoes (the recipe calls for russet - I used yukon gold - I also did not peel them.)

This is a most delicious stir-fry, made with filet mignon and French fries. Yes, you read that right. Fries. It really works. Trust me. I only wish I had more fries at the end, to soak up what little sauce that was left at the bottom of the bowl. This dish is often served with rice - I thought that would be a bit much with the French fries. This on it's own was plenty.

In past recipes, we have marinated the proteins; but since we used filet mignon, it being such a tender cut of beef, there was no need to marinate it, and it came out tender and delicious.  The flavor of this stir-fry was amazing.

Thank you, Grace and Matt, for picking such a wonderful recipe to celebrate our 3rd anniversary with.

 Happy wokiversary to Matt, Grace, and to everyone in the WW family!

(I saw this beauty, swaying in the breeze outside my kitchen window, as I was waiting for my beef to sear.)

The one drawback of the frozen peppers, is that they come in a one pound bag - this recipe only called for up to a tablespoon of sliced pepper.

I did a search and found these recipes that I thought sounded quite good, where you can use up those extra peppers, if you are so inclined:

Lomo Saltado Tacos

Ají de Gallina (calls for 4 peppers!)

Papa a la Huancaína (calls for 6 peppers!)

And if you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, here is a list of Peruvian ingredients, and where you can find them (if only I saw this beforehand):

Pisco Trail

We have been asked not to post the recipes here on our blog. If you would like the recipe, you will find it on page 92, of  Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge, which you can purchase at your local bookstore or find it at your local library. I highly recommend purchasing the book - you won't be disappointed.  

Wok Wednesdays is an online cooking group. If you would like information about joining us, click here, or visit us on Facebook. Would love for you to wok along with us!