Black pepper beef is a total takeout classic, but it’s often a sad affair thanks to tough meat, insipid sauce and soggy vegies. My spin is infinitely better, with its tender, luscious, savoury goodness. A Chinese recipe to treasure.
500g (1 lb) chuck steak (aka gravy beef)
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, cut into wedges
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
2 small capsicums (bell peppers), deseeded, cut into bite-sized pieces
150g (5 oz) canned baby corn, drained
2 spring onions (scallions), cut into batons
Marinade:
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese Shaoxing wine*
½ tsp bicarb soda (baking soda)
3 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)
Black pepper sauce:
3 tbsp oyster sauce
3 tbsp Chinese Shaoxing wine*
2 tbsp soy sauce
½ tsp dark soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp white vinegar
- Slice the steaks against the grain and at a diagonal to form wide strips that are no more than ½cm (⅛ inch) thick.
- Whisk together the marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add the beef and mix well with your hands to make sure each piece of beef is coated. Set aside to marinate for 10 minutes.
- To make the stir-fry sauce, mix the ingredients in a small bowl.
- Place a wok over high heat until hot, then add the vegetable oil. Add onion and garlic, then stir-fry for 30 seconds. Push the onion and garlic to the sides of the pan and add the beef strips into the centre. Spread the beef out as much as possible and allow to sear (don’t touch it!) for about 2 minutes. Then stir-fry and combine all the ingredients.
- Before the beef is cooked through, add the capsicum and baby corn. Stir-fry for another 30 seconds or until the beef is just cooked. Add the black pepper stir-fry sauce and spring onion, then stir-fry for another minute or until everything is well coated and the onion is tender. Turn the heat off and transfer to a serving plate. Serve with steamed or egg fried rice .
- Notes: – Chinese Shaoxing wine is a type of cooking rice wine. It’s available in the Asian aisle of some major supermarkets or from an Asian grocery store. If you’d rather leave it out, simply replace with beef stock.
