Thai Beef Pitas

Susie D's Note:

This is a tasty under 30 minute meal perfect for a busy day and made with ingredients usually on hand. The recipe serves the meat mixture in pitas, but flour tortillas or lettuce wraps would be a good choice too. The recipe is from Family Circle magazine.

• Total Time: 25 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 2 red bell peppers , seeded and thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger , minced
• 3 garlic cloves , minced
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or less according to your taste)
• ½ cup cilantro
• 3 tablespoons peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 lime, juice of
• 2 green onions , sliced thin including green tops to garnish
• 4 pita pockets , whole
• romaine lettuce leaf

Directions:

1. Crumble beef into large nonstick skillet and cook over medium heat. Stir occasionally until browned, about 5-6 minutes. Drain well.
2. Add peppers, ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes to skillet. Cook until peppers are crisp tender.
3. Whisk together in a small bowl peanut butter, cilantro, soy sauce, lime juice, and sesame oil. Stir into beef and pepper mixture.
4. Cut pitas in half and line with lettuce leave. Fill each with about 1/2 cup of the meat mixture. Sprinkle with green onions and serve.

Reviews

[Chef #494084]

This was great! Made it just as is but with no cilantro (just because I hate it) and used a bag of frozen peppers and onions instead of fresh. Easy and yummy! Gets 5 stars from me!! Thanks SusieD

[CaliforniaJan]

This is a 5+ star recipe because the flavor is outstanding! We served them in pitas but it would be fantastic in lettuce or just on rice. It is jumping right into my Best of 2010 cookbook! Made for ZWT #6 and I'm a Quisine Queen.

[LonghornMama]

Will make this again! Something different and quick to fix for dinner. Everyone in my family gobbled this up including the boys who don't eat red bell peppers. Don't sub the red peppers, by the way. They're a wonderful addition for color, taste, and nutrition, with just the right amount of sweetness. I used extra fresh minced ginger and garlic. Honestly, I wasnt sure I'd like ground beef instead of something like flank steak, but it was very good. Thanks for sharing the recipe!