Stir-Fry Beef

 

Serves 4

1 ½ lb sirloin, trimmed and sliced thin across the grain

1 onion, julienned

1 red bell pepper, cut to bite-sized pieces

8 oz package sliced mushrooms

1 bunch green onions, chopped

6 Tbs vegetable oil, divided

¼ cup oyster sauce

2 Tbs soy sauce, divided

1 Tbs rice vinegar

1 Tbs sweet Thai chili sauce

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp grated ginger (fresh frozen)

2 tsp toasted sesame oil, divided

1 tsp chili oil (Chinese, preferably Lao Gan Ma brand)

Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Cornstarch, if needed

Slice the beef first, and put it in a bowl. Add 1 Tbs soy sauce, 1 tsp sesame oil, and a generous grinding of black pepper. Stir it together and set it aside to marinate for a few minutes.

Prep your vegetables, keeping them separate (I use paper plates). Add the white parts of your green onions to your other onion.

Prep your sauce. Combine the remaining tablespoon soy sauce, the oyster sauce, rice vinegar, and sweet chili sauce in a small bowl and stir to combine.

Prep your aromatics. Combine your garlic, ginger, sesame oil and chili oil in a small dish.

Heat your wok to smoking hot, and keep it on high for this part. Add 1 Tbs oil and stir to coat the cooking area. Working in batches, place a third of your meat in a single layer in the wok. Leave the pieces alone until they sear and brown nicely on one side, then give them a stir and get them out of the wok into a large bowl you have close at hand. The meat should NOT be cooked all the way through but have a little pink left. Repeat for the other two batches.

Turn down the heat to medium high. Add a little oil—maybe not a whole tablespoon—and stir-fry the red bell pepper. Your goal is to blister or caramelize the peppers rather than cook them all the way through. Add them to the bowl with the meat. (Everything is going in there.)

Do the same with the onion, and then the mushrooms. You may wish to add a slight sprinkle of salt and pepper to each batch.

Turn the wok down to medium. Add 1 tablespoon oil, and then add your aromatics. Quickly stir them and keep stirring for about 10 seconds. Add your sauce, and keep stirring until it is all bubbly hot.

Add the meat and vegetables back into the wok. Add the green onion. Stir it all together until the sauce coats everything and it is warmed through.

If desired, thicken the sauce by pushing the food up to the sides of the wok to make a pit for the sauce in the bottom. Turn up the heat to get the sauce boiling, and then stir in a little cornstarch mixed with water. Careful! It doesn’t take much, maybe a teaspoon or two. Stir to coat.

If you wanted to you could garnish with toasted sesame seeds or ground peanuts, but I usually don’t care at this point. Serve with rice, of course.