Stir-fried Chinese beef with snow peas, a savory and delightful dish.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- sauce
- 1 medium onion cut in 1/8ths
- 1 small fresh chili (i use serrano) finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger grated
- 200 g snow peas trimmed
- 500 g lean rump/round steak cut in thin strips
- 1/2 red capsicum sliced
- 2 teaspoons cornflour
- 1/4 cup beef stock
- Carbohydrate 19.9648944482432 g
- Cholesterol 98.3333333333333 mg
- Fat 12.6038888902523 g
- Fiber 4.07883328581795 g
- Protein 41.4978688944682 g
- Saturated Fat 4.00297333352568 g
- Serving Size 1 1 (476g)
- Sodium 260.863333477101 mg
- Sugar 15.8860611624252 g
- Trans Fat 2.07289250020953 g
- Calories 364 calories
Step-by-step
- Heat 1/2 the oil in a frypan.
- Stir fry onion, garlic, chilli and ginger for 2-3 minutes.
- Toss in snow peas and stir fry further 2-3 minutes.
- Remove from pan – set aside.
- Heat remaining oil and stir fry meat and capsicum until meat changes colour and is just cooked through.
- Blend cornflour with the beef stock.
- Combine wine, soy sauce and cornflour mixture then pour over meat in pan.
- Cook until sauce boils and thickens.
- Reduce heat, return vegetables to the pan.
- Stir fry 1-2 minutes to heat through.
Controlling moisture determines whether stir-fried beef chars correctly or simply steams in its own juices. Slicing lean rump or round steak across the grain shortens the muscle fibers, yielding tender bites once heat hits the protein. Freezing the steak for 20 minutes beforehand stiffens the muscle, allowing for uniform 1/4-inch strips that cook in seconds.
Maintaining high heat keeps vegetables crisp and vibrant rather than limp and drab. Snow peas and red capsicum require only two to three minutes in a blazing frypan to develop blistered edges while retaining an audible snap. Overcrowding the pan drops surface temperature immediately, releasing water and destroying that necessary textural contrast.
Blending cornflour directly into cold beef stock prevents starchy lumps from forming when introduced to the pan. Wine and soy sauce combine with this slurry to coat the back of a spoon once brought to a boil. Without this starch binder, the liquids run off the meat entirely, pooling at the bottom of the dish instead of clinging.
Dry white wine acts as an accessible deglazing agent here, though dry sherry or Chinese Shaoxing wine provides a more traditional fermented depth. Substituting water for beef stock strips away necessary umami, requiring an extra pinch of salt to compensate for the lost savory backbone.
