Lightly Stir-Fried Beef

Xiao Chao Niu Rou (小炒牛肉)

Thinly sliced beef tenderloin is stir-fried with red and green chilies, garlic sprouts, cilantro, and celery in this classic country-style Chinese dish.

Lightly Stir-Fried literally means Small Stir-Fry (小炒) in Chinese. Why? Because thin slices of meat and veggies are stir-fried for a small amount of time. Once cooking, this dish finishes swiftly. Add an ingredient, stir it in, and add the next. It’s as simple as that. Lightly Stir-Fried Beef originated as a Country-Style (农家) and Home-Style (家常) cooking method in the Southern Chinese Provinces of Hunan, Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yunnan but have become restaurant staples throughout China.

A common version, and the one technically presented below, is Lightly Stir-Fried Yellow Beef (小炒黄牛肉). ‘Yellow Beef’ comes from a type of Chinese cow with a yellowish tan hide that is considered to have extremely tender and flavorful meat. While possibly not available in the US, there are plenty of good options for quality Beef – with even more variety and better availability than in China. Look for Tenderloin with excellent marbling and no connective tissue. This will provide tender meat on par with Chinese Yellow Beef.

Lightly Stir-Fried Beef typically uses a variety of vegetables and aromatics. Often, when two different types of Peppers are used like in the following recipe, the dish is known as Double-Pepper Lightly Stir-Fried Beef (双椒小炒牛肉). Chefs will also name the dish based on other key ingredients such as Celery, Garlic Sprouts, or Cilantro. All of which can be added in greater quantity to adjust the flavor. An interesting version of this dish that I tried in Yunnan was called Lightly Stir-Fried Beef with Pu’er Tea Leaves (普洱茶叶小炒牛肉). As the name suggests, the Beef was literally stir-fried with fresh Pu’er Tea Leaves.

Prep Time: 15 min

Cook Time: 5 min

Total Time: 20 min

Serving: 2 people

Ingredients

300 – 400 grams Beef Tenderloin (牛里脊)

Marinade
1 Tbsp. Yellow Liquor (黄酒; OR Chinese Cooking Wine)
1 Tbsp. Oyster Sauce
2 tsp. Light Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp. Ground White Pepper
2 tsp. Water
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tbsp. Sesame Oil

Aromatics
6 – 10 Pickled Mountain Chilies (野山椒; OR Pickled Red Chilies)
4 – 6 cloves of Garlic
1 2-inch block of Ginger
1 2-inch block of Pickled Young Ginger (泡仔姜; Optional)

Peppers
6 – 10 fresh Long Red Chilies (红线椒; OR Sweet Red Pepper; OR Red Bell Pepper)
6 Long Green Chilies (二荆条)

Finishing Aromatics
4 – 6 stalks of Chinese Celery
1 8-inch stalk of Garlic Sprout
1 large bunch of Cilantro

Peanut Oil

2 Tbsp. Light Soy Sauce

Sauces
1 tsp. Oyster Sauce
1 tsp. Light Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp. Dark Soy Sauce

Brightening Oil
1/2 tsp. Sesame Oil

Directions

1.) Slice the Beef at least an 1/8-inch-thick or slightly thinner, cutting across the grain. Place the slices in a large bowl.

2.) Marinate the Beef:

• Add the first four Marinade ingredients (Yellow Liquor, Oyster Sauce, Soy Sauce, and White Pepper) and mix them by hand until absorbed into the meat.
• Then, combine the Water and Baking Soda in a small bowl before pouring it over the Beef. Once again mix by hand until every piece is fully coated.
• Finally, add some Sesame Oil, which will not only flavor the meat but also prevent the pieces from sticking together when frying.
• Allow the meat to marinate at least 15 minutes and up to half an hour while preparing the other ingredients.

3.) Prepare the Aromatics placing everything into the same bowl:

• Pickled Mountain Chilies: Slice the Mountain Chilies into 1/2-inch pieces.
• Garlic: Peel and slice the Garlic.
• Ginger: Peel and slice the Ginger.
• Pickled Ginger: Slice and then roughly dice the Young Ginger.

4.) Prepare the Peppers, placing everything into the same bowl:

• Long Red Chilies: Cut one Red Chili lengthwise on a bias at a 45-degree angle, rotate the Chili, cut again on a bias, and repeat until the entire Chili is cut into wide strips. Repeat with all of the remaining Chilies.
• Long Green Chilies: Cut one Green Chili lengthwise on a bias at a 45-degree angle, rotate the Chili, cut again on a bias, and repeat until the entire Chili is cut into wide strips. Repeat with all of the remaining Chilies.

5.) Prepare the Finishing Aromatics, placing all of them in the same bowl:

• Celery: Cut the Celery into roughly 2-inch-long pieces.
• Garlic Sprout: Slice the Garlic Sprout on a bias at a 45-degree angle into roughly 2-inch-long pieces.
• Cilantro: Chop the Cilantro into roughly 2-inch-long pieces.

6.) Add about 1/2 cup of Peanut Oil to a seasoned wok and heat it on medium-high until hot. Carefully, add the Beef to the hot oil and allow it to sit for about 10 to 15 seconds before stirring. Gently fry the Beef another 10 seconds or until cooked just enough that the pieces are evenly browned and no longer stick together.

7.) Add the 2 Tablespoons of Soy Sauce to the Beef and pour the hot Beef and Oil into a large metal bowl. Then, clean out the wok.

(Reserve the saucy oil from the Beef to be used as a delicious stir-fry sauce).

8.) Add about 1/4 cup of Peanut Oil to the wok, heat it on medium-high, and then toss in the Aromatics. Cook them for just a few seconds until fragrant and then immediately add the Peppers, stir-frying them just until fragrant.

9.) Add a Tablespoon or so of the reserved sauce from the Beef, splashing it around the sides of the wok, before tossing the Aromatics and Peppers into it. Then, add the other Sauces (Oyster Sauce, Light Soy Sauce, and Dark Soy Sauce) along with the Beef.

10.) Stir-fry the Beef with everything in the wok for about 10 to 15 seconds until the Beef is fully cooked and nicely colored.

11.) Add the Finishing Aromatics along with the Brightening Oil and toss everything together one last time. Plate the delicious Lightly Stir-Fried Beef and serve it with individual bowls of white rice.

 

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