Beef Stir Fry with Honey Ginger Sauce!

I love a good stir fry for several reasons.  They are quick, you can use just about any vegetables you have on hand and they stretch a small amount of meat into a meal that serves several people.   I usually use chicken or shrimp for stir fry, but I had this sirloin steak that was actually intended for fajitas when I bought it and I then I got this craving for stir fry.   The sauce that is used in this stir fry is the best part of it.  It's a combination of honey, soy, garlic and ginger and with those ingredients you can't go wrong.   Also, it took about 20 minutes to make, if you don't count the time for marinating the meat.   Here is what you will need:

1 1b. sirloin steak, sliced thin or you could use flank steak
1 cup water
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 Tbs. garlic, minced
1 tsp. ginger powder or 1 Tbs. ginger root, minced
1 tsp. cornstarch
1 10 oz frozen stir fry vegetables or equivalent fresh vegetables (broccoli, red or green peppers, snow peas, water chestnuts, onions or whatever you prefer)
1 can sliced water chestnuts (optional)
1 cup cashews (optional)
1/4 cup vegetable oil or canola oil
2 Tbs. butter
dash of salt
dash of black pepper

2 cups uncooked rice, cooked to serve over

I bought about a pound of sirloin steak already sliced thin and cut those strips into bite size pieces.  Mix the water, soy sauce, honey, garlic and ginger in a bowl.  Place the beef in a Ziploc bag and pour about 1/3 of the sauce over the beef.  Close the bag and refrigerate for at least an hour.   Reserve the rest of the sauce for the stir fry.

Heat oil in a wok or skillet with deep sides.  Add 1 Tbs. butter to it.  Drain and discard the marinade the beef was in. Place the beef in the pan and stir on high heat for about 3 minutes or until it's no longer pink.  Keep it moving in the pan.   Remove from the pan to a plate.

Place the vegetables in the pan.  If it needs a little more oil, add it first and get it hot.  I added a cup of fresh, sliced mushrooms and a cup of shredded carrots to the frozen blend.  You can add whatever you have on hand or just use the frozen vegetables.  This is very flexible to your tastes.   Stir fry the vegetables for about 3 minutes.  Add the beef back to pan along with the other tablespoon of butter.  Stir fry together for a minute or two.  Whisk the cornstarch into the remainder of the sauce.  Pour this over the beef and vegetable mixture. 

At this point, if you are using water chestnuts or cashews, add them in now.  Bring this up to a boil and then reduce the heat.  The sauce will thicken and should coat everything nicely.  Cook together for about 2-3 minutes.  Serve immediately over cooked rice.

Beef Stir Fry with Honey Ginger Sauce!