Dish of Beef with Chilis, Sichuan
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Beef with Chilis, Sichuan


China, Sichuan   -   Gan bian niu rou si
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 2 w/rice
***
2 hrs
Most		 From the salt mining region of Sichuan, this spicy beef dish is a popular local specialty. It is almost moderately hot by Southern California standards.

12
7
----
4
1
1
3
1/2
8
1
2
1/2
1/2
----
1
1/2
oz

---

t
T
cl
in

T
T
c
t
---
T
t
Beef, lean
Lettuce Leaves (1)
---- Flavoring
Chilis dry (2)
Sichuan Pepper (3)
Black Beans (4)
Garlic
Ginger root
Garlic Chives (5)
Chili Bean Paste (6)
Lard
Water
Salt
---- Garnish
Hot Oil
Sichuan Pepper (3)
Prep   -   (1-1/4 hrs - 25 min work)
  1. Remove excess fat from BEEF, chill it in the freezer until quite stiff (about an hour) and slice across the grain as thin as you can. Slices should be about 3/4 by 1-1/2 inch, or however works with your beef.
  2. Bring plenty of Water to a boil. Plunge the Beef Slices into boiling water over high heat, and as soon as it comes back to a boil, stir, drain, rinse, drain and set aside.
  3. Rinse LETTUCE LEAVES and tear into small pieces.
  4. For sauce, chop GARLIC, GINGER, CHIVES fine. Mix and pound to a paste in a mortar.
  5. Rinse Black Beans and chop small.
  6. For garnish: dry fry 1/2 t Sichuan Pepper until fragrant and grind fairly fine.
Run   (20 min)
  1. Heat Lard in a wok or spacious sauté pan. Stir in Chilis and 1 t Sichuan Peppercorns. Fry stirring until chilis start to darken. Remove from heat, remove chilis and peppercorns from the oil and chop fine.
  2. Reheat the Lard and stir in Black Beans for about 30 seconds, then stir in Garlic mix and Bean Paste. Fry stirring until aromatic.
  3. Stir Chili mix back in, then add Water and Salt. Bring to a boil, stir in Beef and cook stirring until most liquid is gone and the sauce adheres to the beef.
  4. Meanwhile, heat 1 T Oil for garnish.
  5. Stir in Lettuce and stir just long enough to mostly wilt it. Turn off heat and transfer to a serving dish. Sprinkle with Hot Oil and ground Sichuan Pepper. Serve immediately.
NOTES:

  1. Lettuce:

      Of course this should be A Choy, a Chinese lettuce now available in Southern California, but Romaine is very like it and will do fine.

  2. Chilis:

      Dry red Japones are much used in the region, and will make the dish almost medium hot. If you want hotter, use de Arbols or Thai chilis. For details see our Thai Chilis page.

  3. Sichuan Peppercorns

      Fruits of a prickly ash tree, - nothing at all like black peppercorns. Asian recipes always call for them to be lightly toasted before use, but to be legally imported into the USA they must already be lightly toasted, so I skip that step. For details see our Sichuan Pepper page.

  4. Black Beans:

      These are salty fermented black soybeans sold in plastic bags and cylindrical paper boxes in any market serving an East or Southeast Asian community. For details see our Fermented Black Beans page.

  5. Garlic Chives

    are long flat leaf chives sold in all Asian markets. They are about 10 inches long. I have used Flowering Chives which are even better, but if you have neither use regular chives, or about 3 scallions.

  6. Chili Bean Paste:

      Sichuan style pastes are made from fava beans, not soy beans and are fairly hot. If you don't have that, the soybean based pastes can be used.

  7. Lard:

      Lard is the traditional frying medium through Thailand and much of China, as well as Hungary, Poland and Czech Republic. The American Heart Association so villainized it Americans are afraid to use it, but it's not nearly as dangerous as the trans fats they told us to use instead. It has a better health profile than butter, and is now increasingly used by top chefs. For details see our Lard page. If you still don't want to use it, use Pure Olive Oil (not virgin), or Avocado oil (richer flavor).
  8. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch
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