A delicious weeknight dinner that takes almost as much time as it takes to make the rice.   

Asian-Style Ground Beef with Green Beans and Basil Leaves

Total time: 20 minutes
Yield: 4 Servings

1 cup uncooked rice
2 Tbl. fish sauce
2 Tbl. Hoisin sauce
1 Tbl. white miso
1 Tbl. gochujang

1 tsp. five-spice powder

1/2 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper

8 ozs. fresh green beans, rinsed and trimmed (or a 12 oz. bag frozen whole or cut-up green beans, slightly defrosted)

2 Tbl. vegetable oil
8 oz. ground beef
2 garlic cloves
1 cup loosely packed basil leaves (lightly chop if leaves are large)

Start cooking the rice according to package directions.

Meanwhile, whisk together the fish sauce, hoisin sauce, white miso, gochujang, fie-spice powder, and black pepper until smooth; set aside. Peel, the mince (or grate) the garlic.  If the string beans are long, cut into bite-size pieces.  Set all aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, then drizzle in the oil. When oil is hot, add ground beef. Use a spatula to stir and break up the meat into small pieces, until it is no longer red (a little pink is okay), about 5 minutes. Turn off heat, then carefully pour out excess oil.

Return skillet to the burner over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, stirring constantly until garlic is well distributed and fragrant, about 2 minutes.

Add green beans and reserved sauce mixture. Stir constantly until everything is evenly distributed and green beans are heated thru but still crisp-tender, about 2-3 minutes.

Remove skillet from heat. If the rice needs a few more minutes to cook, cover skillet and keep warm.

When rice is ready, remove skillet cover (if used) then add basil to the skillet, stirring around a few seconds to distribute the leaves.

Divide the rice among 4 plates. Spoon meat mixture evenly over the rice; serve immediately.