This recipe was inspired from a post I found on Pinterest. Ah….pinterest….how I love thee. Seriously – what did I do before Pinterest? Every night I lay in bed and play on the Pinterest app on my iPhone – there is nothing better than it. Seriously. I get so many ideas for recipes, decorating, fitness (which I never do….but I still get inspired) and so on and so on. This recipe is adapted from the blog “Confessions of a Foodie Bride” http://www.jasonandshawnda.com/foodiebride/archives/8582 – great blog and recipes btw!
I made this dish last week on a night I knew I was going to be at work late – so when I got home from work I would have easy dinner prep. Love a crockpot meal – so incredibly convenient.
First things first – this is what you’ll need: beef shoulder (the original recipe calls for short ribs – which I love – but I don’t think that high of quality of meat is best used in a crockpot meal), soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, red pepper flakes, sesame oil, brown sugar (I had dark on hand so that’s what I used), seedless cucumber, onion, ginger and garlic (or ginger garlic paste like I had), salt, and small flour tortillas.
Get the marinade started by combining the 14 ounce bottle of soy sauce, 2 t. sesame oil, 1/4 c. rice wine vinegar, 2 t. crushed red peppers (less if you like it less spicy), 2 T. ginger garlic paste (or 1.5 T. garlic and .5 T. ginger) and 1/4 c. brown sugar. Use a whisk and mix the marinade together.
Cut the meat into larger size chunks – mine were probably 3/4″ or 1″ each – and place into the marinade in the crockpot. Cover with the lid and place on low for 6-8 hours.
Next: slice 3/4 of the cucumber into thin slices, slice 2 small white onions into thin half moon slices – and combine in a large Tupperware. Combine with 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar, 1 t. red pepper flakes, and 1/2 t. salt – mix and cover with a lid and let sit in the fridge until ready to use.
Fast forward 8-10 hours – and dinner is ready! Shred the beef in the sauce and place onto small flour tortillas. Top with the cucumber slaw and eat.
The flavors are really good – actually – the beef is really delicious. I love beef cooked like this – typically I prefer it cooked in the Dutch oven – but the crockpot is so convenient. The beef in combination with cucumber slaw is savory, sweet, and refreshing at the same time. Really delicious. And different – which is always nice to try.
One thing I really loved about the slaw – the onions weren’t very “onion-ey” because they had become pickled in the vinegar – which is great because the slaw then did not overpower the beef.
Highly recommend if you are looking for something different, something easy, and something delicious – enjoy!
Asian Beef Tacos with Cucumber Slaw
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
For crockpot beef:
2.5 lb beef shoulder
14 ounces soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
1/4 cup brown sugar
For cucumber slaw:
1 medium english cucumber (seedless) slices – about 1.5 cups
2 small white onions (1 cup)
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1 t. red pepper flakes
1 t. salt
Additional:
Small flour torillas
Directions
- Spray the crockpot with cooking spray to avoid anything sticking. Make the marinade by combining the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, and brown sugar. Use a whisk to combine the ingredients in the crockpot.
- Cut the beef into 3/4″ – 1″ pieces and place into the marinade in the crockpot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, until tender and able to easily shred the beef.
- Make the cucumber slaw by thinly slicing the cucumber and onions and combining in a large Tupperware with the rice wine vinegar, salt, and red pepper flakes. Cover and refrigerate anywhere from 1 – 8 hours.
- To assemble the tacos: shred the beef in the asian sauce; place shredded beef on small flour tortillas; and top with 1/4 cup or more of the cucumber slaw.
Enjoy!
