Ingredients:
– 600g skirt of flank of beef sliced
– 1 large free range egg
– cornflour
– 1 red chilli ( a safe amount to serve someone who is sensitive to spice. Taste a small piece of chilli before you add it to gauge how much you want to add)
– 2 inches of root ginger (more or less to taste)
– 3-4 garlic cloves
– 2 carrots
– large bunch of spring onions
– salt and pepper
– 2 limes
– dark soy sauce
– chinese cooking wine
– oil for frying
– 300g basmati rice
Equipment:
– 2 chopping boards
– 2 sharp knives
– meat tenderiser
– large frying pan
– large saucepan and lid
– sieve
– wooden stirrer
– 2 table spoons
– 2 large bowls
– whisk
– small funnel
– plate
– grater / zester
Method:
1 Rinse rice thoroughly and boil in a large sauce pan.
2 Tenderise the meat on both sides before slicing into strips.
3 Heat a generous amount of oil in the large frying pan, whilst you are waiting for it to heat, whisk the egg into a large bowl and in the other bowl pour enough cornflour to cover the bottom and season with salt and pepper. Dip the beef strips firstly in the egg and then in the cornflour, evenly coating the surface.
4 Fry the beef in hot oil for a couple of minutes on each side and remove from heat. Move beef onto a plate, you will need the pan later.
5 Strain rice, and transfer to metal sieve, cook over a pan of boiling water with the lid on to steam.
6 wash all vegetables and chop.
7 Fry the garlic cloves and root ginger first, followed by the carrots and green beans, drizzle with soy sauce and around 2 table spoons of chinese cooking wine.
8 Add the zest of ½ a lime and the juice of 1 lime before tossing in the spring onions and fried beef. Heat together for a few minutes before serving.
9 To present, fill the funnel with rice, and upturn onto the plate so you have a cone shaped rice tower. Place the beef & veg next to it, garnish with a drizzle of soy sauce and a slice of lime.
I have tried and tested many recipes for chinese chilli beef. I have had good outcomes and bad outcomes and used my experiences to create a recipe that works best for me. Here are some of my favourites:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/chilli_beef_46473 – Delicious way of cooking the beef
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/3655/crispy-chilli-beef-with-broccoli – much more colour in this recipe, however when I did it I had quite tough beef which spoiled it.
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/9646/chinesestyle-braised-beef-onepot – delicious slow cooked beef casserole, my favourite recipe, although unsuitable for chopsticks.
The recipe I have come up with is influenced by the above recipes, just with added vegetables and extra seasonings, it is quite a dry dish so suitable for chopsticks and is truly delicious. If I were to make it for myself, I would add more chilli.
glowbey 