Crispy Fried Beef Chillie

 

Crispy fried beef with chilli

From the Schezwan Sichuan Schezuan region, this dish is spicy and aromatic.

Regional cuisine in China is vast, and this type of food is popular in the subcontinent of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and extends to the UAE, where the residents are largely from the sub-continent.

This Chinese dish is adopted by the locals wherever they may be cooking it up and serving it. It is adapted to their food palates and often spicier than what the Chinese people would eat.

Crispy fried beef should be double fried for best results. It helps retain the crisp finish to this dish-essential to the title.

Serves 6

1 kg /2.2 lb beef - sliced thin and long

1 1/2 cup potato flour or corn flour (cornstarch)

For the marinade  

Grind together 
3 cloves of garlic
1 thumb size piece of ginger
1 small onion 
1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce

Marinate the meat for 20 minutes.

Sprinkle half the potato flour on it and leave it for another 10 minutes.

Heat the wok with

1/4 cup oil

 

Sprinkle the meat with the rest of the potato flour, coating it twice, and ensure each piece is separated with the help of the flour, a fork, and your fingers.

Cook each piece to a sizzle. Not more than a minute.

Remove to a kitchen towel.

 

To prepare the sauce

boil together 

1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup warm water
1/3 cup soya sauce

2 tbsp shaoxing wine or rice wine vinegar or sake
1 tbsp sesame oil

2 tbsp hoisin

3 tsp corn flour (cornstarch)

Bring it to a boil. Add a mixture of up to 3 tsp of corn flour (cornstarch) with 6 tsp of water, stirring until smooth. This depends on how thick you would like your sauce to coat the meat with.

 

Sprinkle it with sesame and diced green onions and serve it with a bed of rice.

 

Tips

The meat has to be of the highest quality and cut against the grain. Tenderloin is the best choice, but sirloin and flank can also work.

 

When ready to serve, you will re-heat the meat in the same oil for a second or two. It's best not to reheat as it tastes best when freshly prepared.

 My published cookbooks are available for sale through myself and on amazon.

The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders is a 3 award winning book. It has been self published in July 2019 and will be going into its second print in 2022. 

The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine was published in 2016 by Austin Macauley and continues to be available through amazon book depot book depository and from the publishers.