Mongolian Crispy Beef

It would seem my rampage of cultural misappropriation is continuing, and the poor abused people of the Gobi-Manchurian steppe have found themselves again, bloodied by my theft of their name and abuse of their cuisine. (Oh, what a plot twist awaits us, dear readers.)

As spoken prior, the SheWolf, has been called back to active duty in the Grand Mothers of America. As such I have slipped the leash of my dietician and nutritionist and can eat as I wish, and what I wish. My first thoughts were “STEAK!!!!”, but no “INDIAN!!!“, wait, wait .. “CHINEESE!!!. And then it occurred to me, I can cook whatever I want, how I want it, as spicy as I can take. And so as the old Bad Wolf battle cry went, “QUICK FAT MAN, TO THE KITCHEN!”.

And just to heap insult upon injury; From Wikipedia:

Mongolian beef is a dish from Taiwan consisting of sliced beef, typically flank steak usually made with onions. The beef is commonly paired with scallions or mixed vegetables and is often not spicy. The dish is often served over steamed rice, or in the US, over crispy fried cellophane noodles. It is a staple dish of American Chinese restaurants. Despite its name, the dish has nothing to do with Mongolian cuisine.

Mongolian beef is among the meat dishes developed in Taiwan where Mongolian barbecue restaurants first appeared. Thus, none of the ingredients or preparation methods are drawn from traditional Mongolian cuisine but from Chinese cuisine.

It would seem, this is cultural misappropriation, three “steppes” removed ….

Chilli Beef (Mongolian Beef)

Crispy strips of beef in a spicy sauce. Better than take out.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine Asian

Servings 4

Calories 439 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 lb Sirloin steaks Thin cut, cut to thin strips
• 4 tbsp Corn Starch
• 1 ea Egg
• 1/4 tsp salt Kosher, of course
• 1/4 tsp Black Pepper Corse Ground
• 5 tbsp Neutral Oil
• 1 ea Onion Medium , Peeled, cut to strips, match the beef
• 1 ea Bell Pepper Medium , stemmed and seeded, cut to strips, match the beef
• 2 ea Thai Chillies Stemmed, Washed, Sliced fine
• 2 tsp Grated Ginger
• 3 tsp Minced Garlic
• 2 tbsp Mirin Rice Vinegar
• 3 tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
• 4 tbsp Tomato Ketchup
• 4 tbsp Powdered Sugar
• 3 tbsp Sweet Chili Sauce

Instructions

 

• Add the corn starch, salt, pepper, and egg to a large mixing bowl. Then whisk well to combine
• Add the steak strips and toss to coat; this will be quite sticky
• Heat 3 tbsp of the oil in a wok over high heat until very hot.
• Working in at least two batches, add the beef strips one at a time, be sure to spread this out.
• Fry the steak until dark brown and crisp, ~5 minutes; turn the strips after 2 minutes.
• Use tongs or chopsticks to remove the beef to a plate lined with paper towels.
• Add one more tbsp of oil to the pan and repeat with the rest of the beef.
• Refresh the oil with up to an additional 1 tbsp of oil; use as little as possible
• Add the onion and bell pepper, and cook for 2-3 minutes until tender-crisp.
• Add in the finely chopped chillies, 1 tsp minced ginger, and three minced cloves of garlic, and cook whilst stirring for 30 seconds.
• Add the 2 tbsp rice vinegar, 3 tbsp soy sauce, 4 tbsp sugar, 4 tbsp tomato ketchup, and the 3 tbsp sweet chilli sauce to the pan.
• Turn up the heat and fast simmer until the sauce reduces slightly.
• Add the beef back in, toss/stir to coat well, and heat through for 1-2 minutes – until the meat is hot.
• Serve over rice or noodles, garnished with slice peppers and green onion.

Notes

Notes on slicing beef:

Always freeze for 30 minutes to firm up the meat for slicing.

Always slice across the grain.

I call out sirloin here, but a rib eye will work, as well as skirt/flank/rump cuts.  Do slice the latter three very thin as they will be chewy, not crispy.

If you like more sauce once can double the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, tomato ketchup, and sweet chilli sauce.

If you want more kick, you can use more chilli peppers.

Nutrition

Calories: 439kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 27gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 70mgSodium: 1295mgPotassium: 477mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 19gVitamin A: 87IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 45mgIron: 2mg

Keyword Beef, Spicy

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