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Dec. 5th, 2021 09:40 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
madbakerThis week's Resolution Recipe: Boiled Beef Slices in a Fiery Sauce.
"The name of the dish is humourously misleading, because although the beef slices are indeed boiled, the final dish is covered in an electrifying sizzle of chiles and Sichuan pepper."
9 oz beef tenderloin (I used tri-tip)
1 Tbsp Shaoxing wine (I used sherry)
3/4 cup cooking oil
7 oz Napa cabbage, preferably the white crunchy parts
2 celery sticks
10-12 dried chiles
2 tsp whole Sichuan pepper
1 Tbsp potato starch
2 1/2 Tbsp Sichuan chile bean paste
2 tsp ground chiles
1 Tbsp finely chopped garlic (Ha! I used... more.)
1 Tbsp finely chopped ginger
1 1/2 cups stock (I used house-made chicken)
1/4 tsp dark soy sauce
a few sprigs of cilantro or 2 Tbsp thinly sliced scallion greens
salt
Cut the beef across the grain into thin, broad slices. Place in a bowl with 1/4 tsp salt, the wine, and 1 Tbsp oil. Mix well and set aside.
Cut the cabbage lengthwise into finger-thick slices, and then into 2" pieces. Cut the celery into 2" lengths and then into thin batons.
Prepare the "knife-mouth chiles." Snip the chiles in half and shake out the seeds as much as possible. Heat 3 Tbsp oil in a wok over high heat. Before it gets too hot, add the chiles and stir. When they begin to sizzle, add the Sichuan pepper and stir until the chiles begin to darken, then quickly remove the spices from the wok with a slotted spoon or fine-mesh strainer, letting any excess oil drain back into the wok. Turn the spices out into a mortar and finely grind with a pestle. Set aside until needed.
Add the potato starch and 1 Tbsp cold water to the beef and mix well to coat all the slices.
Return the oily wok to high heat and, when it's hot, tip in the vegetables and stir-fry until hot and barely cooked, seasoning with about 1/4 tsp salt. Pile the vegetables in the center of a large, deep serving bowl.
Add 3 Tbsp oil to the wok and heat over medium heat. Add the chile bean paste and stir-fry gently until the oil is red and fragrant. Add the ground chiles and stir a couple of times, then tip in the garlic and ginger and continue to stir-fry until they smell wonderful. Pour in the stock and soy sauce and bring it to a boil. Scatter the beef slices into the boiling liquid, nudging them so they don't stick together. When the beef is just cooked, pour the contents of the wok over the waiting vegetables.
Rinse and dry the wok, then return to high heat and add 5 Tbsp oil. Stir until sizzling hot. Quickly tip the reserved spices into the center of the serving bowl and ladle over the hot oil. Scatter over the cilantro or scallions and rush the bowl to the table before the sizzling stops!
What worked: It was fine. I actually lowered the chiles somewhat because my Sichuan chile spice tolerance is higher than the wife's.
What didn't: The butcher tried to sell me $65/lb beef tenderloin. I went with a cheaper cut, since I'm pretty sure that's what is intended.
The wok triggered our smoke alarm. I really have to figure out how to avoid that. Because I was wary of triggering the alarm again, I didn't get the ending oil hot enough so there was no sizzle.
Will I make it again? I don't think so. For all the work this entailed, it wasn't that exciting. There are lots more recipes in this book to try or make again; this doesn't have to be one of them.
"The name of the dish is humourously misleading, because although the beef slices are indeed boiled, the final dish is covered in an electrifying sizzle of chiles and Sichuan pepper."
9 oz beef tenderloin (I used tri-tip)
1 Tbsp Shaoxing wine (I used sherry)
3/4 cup cooking oil
7 oz Napa cabbage, preferably the white crunchy parts
2 celery sticks
10-12 dried chiles
2 tsp whole Sichuan pepper
1 Tbsp potato starch
2 1/2 Tbsp Sichuan chile bean paste
2 tsp ground chiles
1 Tbsp finely chopped garlic (Ha! I used... more.)
1 Tbsp finely chopped ginger
1 1/2 cups stock (I used house-made chicken)
1/4 tsp dark soy sauce
a few sprigs of cilantro or 2 Tbsp thinly sliced scallion greens
salt
Cut the beef across the grain into thin, broad slices. Place in a bowl with 1/4 tsp salt, the wine, and 1 Tbsp oil. Mix well and set aside.
Cut the cabbage lengthwise into finger-thick slices, and then into 2" pieces. Cut the celery into 2" lengths and then into thin batons.
Prepare the "knife-mouth chiles." Snip the chiles in half and shake out the seeds as much as possible. Heat 3 Tbsp oil in a wok over high heat. Before it gets too hot, add the chiles and stir. When they begin to sizzle, add the Sichuan pepper and stir until the chiles begin to darken, then quickly remove the spices from the wok with a slotted spoon or fine-mesh strainer, letting any excess oil drain back into the wok. Turn the spices out into a mortar and finely grind with a pestle. Set aside until needed.
Add the potato starch and 1 Tbsp cold water to the beef and mix well to coat all the slices.
Return the oily wok to high heat and, when it's hot, tip in the vegetables and stir-fry until hot and barely cooked, seasoning with about 1/4 tsp salt. Pile the vegetables in the center of a large, deep serving bowl.
Add 3 Tbsp oil to the wok and heat over medium heat. Add the chile bean paste and stir-fry gently until the oil is red and fragrant. Add the ground chiles and stir a couple of times, then tip in the garlic and ginger and continue to stir-fry until they smell wonderful. Pour in the stock and soy sauce and bring it to a boil. Scatter the beef slices into the boiling liquid, nudging them so they don't stick together. When the beef is just cooked, pour the contents of the wok over the waiting vegetables.
Rinse and dry the wok, then return to high heat and add 5 Tbsp oil. Stir until sizzling hot. Quickly tip the reserved spices into the center of the serving bowl and ladle over the hot oil. Scatter over the cilantro or scallions and rush the bowl to the table before the sizzling stops!
What worked: It was fine. I actually lowered the chiles somewhat because my Sichuan chile spice tolerance is higher than the wife's.
What didn't: The butcher tried to sell me $65/lb beef tenderloin. I went with a cheaper cut, since I'm pretty sure that's what is intended.
The wok triggered our smoke alarm. I really have to figure out how to avoid that. Because I was wary of triggering the alarm again, I didn't get the ending oil hot enough so there was no sizzle.
Will I make it again? I don't think so. For all the work this entailed, it wasn't that exciting. There are lots more recipes in this book to try or make again; this doesn't have to be one of them.
