Dish of Beef in Fiery Sauce
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Beef in Fiery Sauce


China, Sichuan   -   Tu dou wei niu rou
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 4 side
***
hrs
Yes		 Beef and celery with chilis and Sichuan peppercorns. Not so fiery by Thai standards but pretty hot for Chinese. Also excellent as a cold beef salad - drain off excess oil before chilling.

14
-----
1
1/4
-----
1
4
1/4
8
2
4
4
1
1
3
3
2
2
oz
---
T
t
---
#

t

t
T
T
T
T
T
c
t
T
Beef, lean (1)
-- Marinade
Rice Wine
Salt
------------
Celery
Scallions
Salt
Chilis, dry (2)
Sichuan Pepper (3)
Potato Starch (4)
Water
Lard (5)
Lard (more)
Chili Bean Paste (6)  
Stock
Soy Sauce, dark
Lard or Oil 		Prep   -   (1-1/4 hrs - 35 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 1 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. Trim white bottoms from CELERY STALKS, then run a vegetable peeler down the edges to remove the outermost fibers. Cut into 2-1/2 inch lengths, then lengthwise into sticks about 3/8 inch wide. Lightly crush Scallions and cut into 2-1/2 inch lengths (white and green). Mix with celery and sprinkle with 1/4 t Salt.
  4. Remove caps and stems from CHILIS and break them in half, Shake out and discard as many seeds as will come out and mix with Sichuan Peppercorns. Dry roast in a skillet until Chilis darken moderately, but do not burn. Cool and grind medium in your spice grinder.
  5. Mix Potato Starch with Water.
Run   -   (20 min)
  1. Heat 1 T Lard quite hot (360°F/180°C) and stir in Celery Mix. Fry stirring until crisp tender. Remove from oil, drain and put in your serving bowl. Keep warm.
  2. Add another 1 T Lard to the pan, bring it up hot, turn heat to medium and stir in Chili Bean Paste, frying until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Stir in Stock and Soy Sauce and bring to a boil over high flame.
  3. Stir Potato Starch mix into the Beef and mix well to coat. Scatter Beef into the stock and leave it undisturbed until the stock comes back to a boil (so the starch gels on the beef), then separate the beef slices. Simmer for a few minutes until beef is cooked through.
  4. Remove the Beef to the serving bowl with the celery in it. Sprinkle Chili mix over the beef.
  5. Meanwhile, in a small pan bring 2 T Oil over a high flame until you see the first wisps of smoke. Pour the hot oil over the Beef and serve immediately. For a dramatic sizzle effect you can do the pouring at the table.
NOTES:

  1. Beef:

      Weight is boneless and with all excess fat removed. The pattern recipe calls for flank steak, but any reasonably tender cut will work fine - I use Chuck.

  2. Chilis, dry:

      Japones are commonly used in the region, but for hotter you can use Thai or de Arbols. 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. Potato Starch:

      If you use cornstarch use about 1/3 more.

  5. 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 urged 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).

  6. Chili Bean Paste:

      Sichuan style pastes are made from fava beans, not soy beans and are fairly hot. Other Chili Bean Pastes can be used without seriously damaging the recipe.

  7. Service:

      If you wish to serve this dish as a cold salad, make as per the recipe, but drain off excess oil be for chilling.

  8. Comments:

      The Chinese name translates simply to "Beef Boiled in Water". Folks in Sichuan say visitors often order this hoping for something that's not chili hot.
  9. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
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