Easy Kung Pao Beef Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you make stir fry beef so it's tender? ›

In today's Chengdu, kung pao chicken is made by tossing cubes of breast meat in a hot wok with dried chiles, Sichuan peppercorns, white spring onion, ginger, garlic, crisp peanuts and a glossy sauce mixed to a particular degree of sweet-and-sour known as “lychee-flavored” because of its resemblance to the fruit.

Make thin cuts about 1/4 inch or thinner. Thin strips of beef are best because they won't take long to cook. The thinner the beef, the more tender it will taste and the less chewy it will be. Thicker strips require longer cooking times, which usually means the outside is overcooked by the time the inside is cooked.

Place a large non-sick pan over medium-high heat and add 1 tsp. olive oil Add steak strips to pan. Stir occasionally until no pink remains and steak strips reach a minimum internal temperature of 145 degrees, 4-6 minutes.

In Chinese cooking, proteins like beef, pork or chicken are velveted first before stir-frying them. There are several ways to velvet, but at its most basic level, it involves marinating meat with at least one ingredient that will make it alkaline. This is what tenderizes the meat, especially cheaper, tougher cuts.

Whether hosting a holiday cookout, serving up some stir-fry or tackling game meats, baking soda is the go-to meat tenderizer to help make your steak, chicken or turkey silkier, juicier and yummier.

Kung pao sauce has two layers of flavor, one is from spices and the other one is from a balance of soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar. Firstly, we fry garlic, ginger, and scallion with dried red pepper. This taste is called “胡辣味”， which means fried chili pepper taste.

Kung pao chicken is a popular Chinese restaurant dish of stir-fried chicken, peanuts and vegetables. It's traditionally made with specialty ingredients, like Sichuan peppercorns, Chinese black vinegar, Chinese rice wine, and whole dried red chilies.

adjective. ˈkəŋ-ˈpau̇ ˈküŋ-, ˈku̇ŋ- : being stir-fried or sometimes deep-fried and served in a spicy hot sauce usually with peanuts.

Cooking Method: Overcooking can cause the steak to lose its moisture, making it dry and chewy. Conversely, undercooking can make certain cuts feel tough.

How do you tenderize meat quickly? ›

THE BAKING SODA METHOD – Great for Beef

Sliced meat (smaller pieces) works better using this method. Sprinkle over the meat your baking soda (bi-carb) 1tsp to 1kg is enough. Coat the meat evenly and leave in the fridge for 15mins or 20mins for tougher cuts like brisket or chuck.

Food & Dining

The first is to cook your protein and your vegetable separately, and combine them only after both are fully cooked. A second rule of thumb for stir-frying: Choose one vegetable per stir-fry. Finally, always remember to add liquid only after everything is more or less finished cooking.

It totally depends on the cut. Chuck etc get tender with prolonged cooking, because they have a lot of connective tissue which melts in a braise. Leaner beef will just get tough.

Tenderize: In a bowl, sprinkle a small amount of baking soda over the beef and coat evenly with soy sauce, salt, starch, and oil (and optional ingredients, if using). Marinate: After sitting in the mixture for 15 to 30 minutes in the fridge, your beef is ready for stir-frying!

Allow the meat to soak in the baking soda solution for 15 minutes. Remove the meat from the liquid and briefly rinse the meat in plain water to strip off the baking soda solution (or as much of it as possible). Cook as desired.

Use tender, quick-frying meats or tofu. Meats such as chicken breast, shrimp, boneless pork or sirloin steak are all great for stir-frying. If the meat isn't tender, the pieces will become tough and chewy from being cooked too fast.

Mechanical tenderization includes using sharp tools to break apart the meat's connective tissues. Thermal tenderization uses heat to break does the meat's connective tissues, and enzymatic tenderization uses enzymes from fruits such as pineapple or fig to break down the meat's connective tissues.