Beef and Broccoli
INGREDIENTS
- 1/4 lb of Flank Steak
- 3 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
- 1 Fingernail Sized Knob of Ginger, Minced
- 1/2 a Head of Broccoli, Cut into Florets
- 2 Tablespoons, Shaoxing Wine
- 1 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
- 1/4 Teaspoon, Baking Soda
- 1 Teaspoon of Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon, Light Soy Sauce
- 1/2 Teaspoon, Dark Soy Sauce
- 1/2 Teaspoon, Sugar
- 1/2 Teaspoon, Shaoxing Wine
- 1/2 Teaspoon, Oyster Sauce
- 3 Tablespoons of Cornstarch
- 1/2 Teaspoon of Fresh Black Pepper
- 1/2 Teaspoon, Oil
- 2 Tablespoons, Oyster Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon, Light Soy Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon, Dark Soy
- 1-2 Tablespoons, Sugar
- 1/4 Cup Chicken Broth
- 1 Teaspoon, MSG (optional)
- 2 Tablespoons, Cornstarch
- 2 Tablespoon, Cold Chicken Broth or Water
INSTRUCTIONS
- Velveting the Meat:
- If you have a full flank steak, slice into 3-4 strips, cutting with the grain of the meat so you have long strips of flank steak, then cutting across the grain, slice into thin strips. 1/4 of a Flank steak should be enough for 1 person. Place the meat in a bowl.
- Add the baking soda, salt, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar, Shaoxing wine, oyster sauce, cornstarch, black pepper and oil, mix and massage the meat for 30 seconds and then let it marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to an hour. While that marinates, prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Preparing the Vegetables:
- Mince the garlic and ginger and place in a bowl.
- Cut the broccoli into small florets.
- Making the Stir Fry Sauce:
- In a small bowl, add the oyster sauce, the light soy sauce, the dark soy sauce, sugar, chicken broth and if you’d like, the msg. Stir to combine
- Making the Cornstarch Slurry:
- In a small bowl, add the cornstarch and the cold chicken broth and mix until a smooth running mixture forms.
- How To Make the Beef with Broccoli:
- Now that the water is up to a boil, we can season it generously with salt, then set a timer for 60 seconds, if you cut them bigger, you may need 90.
- Again we want them to be cooked but with a little bit in the center of the stalk. Nothing worse than overcooked broccoli in a dish like this. After 60 seconds, drain the broccoli and then shock them with cold water to stop the cooking, with a small batch like this you can just rinse under cold water.
- Now back at the stove we're gonna use a carbon steel pan on the burner on high heat and let that get hot enough so the pan starts slightly smoking. Then add a ring of oil around the pan, enough to coat it and then add in the beef. And it’s vital to not overcrowd, if you are doing this for more than 2 people, you’ll need to do them in batches. Spread them out so the make contact with the pan and usually a Chinese restaurant would stir constantly, that's cause their gear is much hotter, they toss constantly so nothing burns, we are working with weaker gear at home so let the meat sear for like 30 second to 1 minute on as high a heat you can and then with a spatula, scoop under the meat and flip. Color is great but it’s not vital, we just want to cook the beef hard and fast. Should cook no more than 1 - 1 1/2 minutes. Then strain out the beef and catch the oil in a bowl. It’s ok if it’s not all the way cooked, it will be cooked again.
- Get the pan back on and lower the heat to medium high, and then add the garlic and ginger, add some of the fat back into the pan and stir for 30 seconds. Then turn the heat off for a second and deglaze with a few tablespoons of the shaoxing wine, turn the heat back on high and after about 10-20 seconds, add the beef back to the pan and toss it with the aromatics. Add a teaspoon of sesame oil and then add the broccoli. Then add the sauce, but not all of it, we don’t want too much, just enough to be glazed on the beef, we can always add more if we need. Then toss it all together, add a touch more sauce if needed, then add in about 3/4 of the slurry, reserving some just in case you need. Toss it all together, stirring until the sauce is glazed and coating the beef and broccoli, it’s shiny and glistening and looks just like beef and broccoli should.
- Now to plate, obviously goes with some good steamed rice, but works great without it if you're watching your carbs. Just pile it high just like a classic Chinese restaurant growing up and then you’ve just made something surprisingly equivalent to your favorite beef with broccoli growing up. Tender, velvety, glistening meat, perfectly cooked glazed broccoli. It’s fast, easy to make and packs in the flavor, it’s simply one of the great dishes of all time.
