I watch Iron Chef America for the excitement, not to get recipe ideas. Most of the stuff they make is either too complicated, too detailed, or I would have no idea where to find many of the ingredients. But, this recipe from Chef Morimoto seems both delicious and somewhat simple.
Nikujaga is a Japanese dish based on meat stews served by the British Royal Navy. Consisting of boiled meat and potatoes, it is given a Japanese twist when soy sauce and sake are added. Nikujaga is often served with a bowl of rice.
For this recipe, you will need vegetable oil, one pound of beef rib eye, four potatoes, a carrot, a dozen baby onions, a yellow bell pepper, a red bell pepper, sake, soy sauce, mirin, chopped chives, and hot chili oil.
To prep for this recipe, cut your potatoes in half then cut them into 1/4 inch slices. Peel and quarter one carrot.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a large oven pan, pour 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Put the pan in the oven and let the oil heat slightly, then add the pound of beef rib eye. Allow it to sear on both sides until brown. Add the four sliced potatoes, quartered carrot, dozen baby onions, yellow bell pepper, and red bell pepper. Stir to coat the veggies with the beef juice then return to the oven and let this cook for 15 minutes.
Remove the pan from the oven and take out the beef and vegetables. Remove the stem and seeds from the peppers and cut each pepper into bite size pieces. Cut the beef into bite size pieces as well. Put the beef and vegetables on a serving platter and deglaze the pan with 2 cups of sake. Add 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and 2 tablespoons of mirin and stir. If you want to thicken this sauce, add a little cornstarch and water.
Pour the sauce over your beef and vegetables. Garnish with chopped chives and drizzle the hot chili oil on top to taste.