Cuban Beef & Rice Bowl

While the rice is cooking, peel and crush the garlic. In a large bowl, combine the garlic, beef strips and Creole spice blend (see ingredients list). Drizzle with olive oil, season with a pinch of pepper and mix well. Set aside to marinate.

Reserve 2 tbs of the tinned pineapple juice then drain and roughly chop the pineapple. Slice the kernels off the corn cob. Finely chop the Roma tomato. Finely chop the mint.

Heat a large frying pan over a high heat. Once hot, add the chopped pineapple and cook for 4 minutes or until charred. Transfer to a medium bowl. Return the pan to a high heat, add the corn kernels and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until lightly browned. TIP: Cover the pan with a lid if the kernels are jumping out. Add the charred corn, Roma tomato, and mint to the bowl with the pineapple. Add the pineapple juice, the vinegar and drizzle with olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper and mix well.

When the rice has 5 minutes of cook time remaining, return the frying pan to a high heat with a drizzle of olive oil. Once hot, add 1/3 of the beef strips and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until browned and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining beef strips. TIP: Cooking the beef in batches over a high heat allows it to brown and develop flavour instead of stewing in the pan.