Five-Spice Beef
Beef is cured with salt and saltpeter brine, then boiled, braised, and stir-fried until the sauce reduces. The dish has an appetizing red color, a five-spice aroma, and a tender, fall-apart texture.
Ingredients
Beef (cut into 4 large pieces, poke holes with bamboo skewers)
1500 g
Cinnamon bark
2 g
Soy sauce
75 g
Star anise
3 g
Fine salt (for marinating)
to taste
Sichuan peppercorns
20
Sugar
19 g
Cloves
1 g
Shaoxing wine
8 g
Dried tangerine peel
2 g
Scallions
to taste
Red yeast rice water
19 g
Ginger
4 slices
Saltpeter water (for marinating)
225 g
Cooking oil (mentioned in steps)
to taste
Instructions
1
Step 1
Cut the beef into 4 large pieces. Poke rows of holes into the beef with a bamboo skewer. Sprinkle with fine salt and saltpeter water, and rub vigorously until the salt dissolves. Place in a bowl to marinate, turning the pieces over a few times during the process. After marinating, remove the beef, rinse thoroughly with clean water, drop into a pot of boiling water and cook for about 3 minutes, then remove and rinse again.
2
Step 2
Heat a wok until hot, add oil, and sear the beef until fragrant. Add the wine, five-spice cinnamon bark, and water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low heat and simmer until the beef is cooked through. Remove and set aside.
3
Step 3
Clean the wok, heat it, add oil, and sear the beef until fragrant. Add the soy sauce, sugar, and Shaoxing wine. Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium heat. Turn the beef constantly during cooking to prevent sticking, and continue until the braising liquid is reduced and absorbed. Remove the beef, let cool, then slice thinly for serving.
