Secret Sauce: Sriracha spices up steak and peppers

The wildly popular Sriracha hot sauce will put some spice into your Valentine dinner.

Sriracha is the 80-year-old invention of a Thai cook, Thanom Chakkapak, who limited the secret sauce to family and friends until her friends demanded more. She then manufactured the sauce, quickly making it the most popular sauce in Thailand.

According to Community Table, the sauce was unknown in the West until a Vietnamese immigrant marketed his own version of the sauce through Huy Fong Foods with the famous rooster logo.

Today, its fame is widespread and you can find it on the shelves of nearly any grocery store.

Its name is pronounced See-rah-jah, as if the syllables were separate words.

This recipe for flank steak and peppers from emeals.com showcases the flavors of Sriracha. Experiment with the sauce, since it is spicy.

Sriracha Steak and Peppers

Ingredients
1/2 pound flank steak
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 red bell pepper (or any color), thinly sliced
1 cup thinly sliced green onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon water
1 1/2 teaspoons Sriracha hot sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

Instructions

Thinly slice beef across the grain; sprinkle with pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large wok or nonstick skillet over high heat. Add beef to pan, and cook 3 minutes or until browned. Remove from pan. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in same skillet over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper, green onions and garlic; cook 3 minutes or until tender. Whisk together soy sauce, water, Sriracha and cornstarch in a small bowl until blended. Add beef and sauce mixture to pan. Bring to a boil and cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly, or until sauce is thickened.