published Jul 26, 2021 When you’re looking for quick cooking, flavorful dinner ideas, stir fries are an easy solution. Not only do they cook quickly, but stir fry recipes are versatile and adaptable. You can make them with nearly any protein and sauce, and they’re a great way to use up the odds and ends from your produce drawer.
Chinese Curry Beef Stir Fry
Cuisine: Asian / ChineseNo trip to China would be complete without a stop in Beijing for a taste of traditional Chinese foods like char siu bao, dumplings, or a mung bean cake. After that, follow the old Silk Road trade route to the southern part of the country to experience a Chinese curry. Although curry isn’t a traditional dish, it’s a popular dish in China, especially in southern cities. It was introduced to the Chinese population by citizens of India and neighboring Middle Eastern countries to the south. Course: Main DishDifficulty: Easy 🥄Description:Seared, caramelized and crispy edges of curried flank steak, coated in a velvety smooth aromatic black bean sauce. That’s what you get in this quick midweek meal of crispy beef stir fry. Serve with rice or noodles and steamed veggies for a fantastic, healthy Asian dinner!
Preventing Chewy Beef Stir Fry
A common problem many people have is tough, chewy meat in their stir fries. Here are some things that can cause this problem: Be sure to use a cut of meat that isn’t overly marbled with fat. Stir fries cook very quickly, so it’s important to use thin, lean cuts of beef. You want a little bit of fat for flavor, but not so much that it doesn’t have time to soften and render down during the quick cook in the wok. If at all possible, avoid using fatty cuts of stew meat! The best cut of meat for stir fry is thinly sliced flank steak. If you can’t find any flank, other inexpensive and good quality choices are skirt steak and beef tenderloin.
Be sure to slice the meat across the grain, not with the grain. When you look at a cut of meat, you’ll notice natural lines running in one direction through the beef; those lines are the “grain”.In addition to that, be sure to cut pieces that aren’t so small that they overcook, or so large that they overcook on the outside and stay raw on the inside Try to cut the steak slices 2 to 3 inches long and ¼ inch wide.
Tenderizing is especially important for quick-cooking dishes like Chinese curry beef. Because the meat cooks very quickly, there isn’t enough time for the fat to melt and render out, so we use a marinade to help with that.
Tenderizing Methods
Velveting Velveting is a method of tenderizing that many Chinese restaurants use. It involves coating the stir fry meat (or poultry) in a mixture of cornstarch and egg whites. After sitting in that mixture for 20 minutes or so, the meat is deep fried in oil for a minute before being placed into the wok. That little bit of cornstarch and egg white tenderizes the meat and also keeps it from soaking up too much cooking oil. Quick marinade Rather than velveting the beef, I use a traditional meat marinade for this stir fry. Liquid marinades and dry spice rubs work double duty, marinating the meat while also adding flavor. Marinade for Chinese Curry Beef The curry flavor in this dish comes from dry curry powder, which is added to the meat marinade. The marinade itself is very simple to make; it’s just a combination of soy sauce and rice vinegar.
Tips for Perfect Chinese Curry Beef
Here are my tips for making the best beef stir fry:
Preheat your wok or skillet before adding oil– Adding room temperature oil to a cold pan will likely cause your food to stick to the pan. Be sure the pan has completely preheated.Don’t crowd the pan– Leave plenty of space around the slices of beef. This ensures that they caramelize and for a nice sear rather than being steam cooked.Let the meat rest before serving– You don’t have to wait long; 5 minutes is perfect. You just want to allow some time for the meat juices to redistribute
Want a little more stir fry recipe action? Bok Choy Stir Fry Salad is fantastic for lunch or a side dish for dinner.
