Stir Fry Beef

A_Sober_Paddy

Hey all,

Looking for advice with regard to cooking beef in a stir fry, I've cooked it a few times and it tends to come out though, its generally the "stir fry beef strips" in Lidl i've used...

Anyone have tips for making these strips come out tender?

chin nuts

Those strips don't tend to be great, better to buy a piece of sirloin or striploin and slice it yourself. Flash fry it first then take it out of the pan, fry the rest of your veg then add the beef back in at the end. Works for me. Oyster sauce and soy sauce make a great sauce. Also if u marinade the beef for an hour or two before frying.

A_Sober_Paddy

chin nuts wrote: »

Those strips don't tend to be great, better to buy a piece of sirloin or striploin and slice it yourself. Flash fry it first then take it out of the pan, fry the rest of your veg then add the beef back in at the end. Works for me. Oyster sauce and soy sauce make a great sauce. Also if u marinade the beef for an hour or two before frying.

Could you suggest a marinade

chin nuts

Garlic, ginger, chilli. Grate them into a bowl. Add soy and a little honey.

BuffyBot

I'd also add lime juice. A little acid will always help tenderise meat

Keane2baMused

A touch of sesame oil will also give a lovely nutty flavour and remind you of a Chinese meal, only cheaper and hopefully tastier

galljga1

I use fillet beef for stirfrys. It's not that much dearer and a whole lot better.

Melendez

This post has been deleted.

VincePP

galljga1 wrote: »

I use fillet beef for stirfrys. It's not that much dearer and a whole lot better.

Fillet no good for flavour as it got too little fat. - Its also about three times the price (€30-€40 per kg v €10 - €12 per kg)

To aid tenderisation, take the meat out of the fridge at least 2 hours before cooking and allow to reach room temp. Adding a marinade will also help.

I think the steak pieces in lidl are "stewing steak" - these would normally be from the leg or the neck and contain more muscle fibre which is harder to break down - but is beautiful when cooked slowly in a stew.

Idealy you want flank or skirt steak - both from the belly area of the cow and absolutely perfect for stirfry.

Any local butcher will have it and it will be similar price to lidl stewing beef and once you allow it room to come to room temperature before cooking, it will be very tender.

rubadub

This was a reply from a guy who works in Chinese restaurants.

rubadub wrote: »

In another thread you mentioned marinating beef with baking soda, I would be interested to hear about this technique.

RJohnG wrote: »

Hi rubadub, beef needs to marinade and tenderise before blanching. Some places pre-cook the beef (about 80% cooked) and refrigerate it. Others blanch the prepared beef when an order comes in. This is the best way I.M.H.O.

We use salt, pepper, sesame oil, potato starch, dark soy and the magic ingredient *baking soda* now this can ruin your beef if you use too much. It will turn rubbery and have a disgusting smell from it. You must do it this way.

Add all the above ingredients in a bowl and mix with the beef. Exactly 1 level Tsp of baking soda per 1kg of beef. Baking soda in last this will tenderise it, wont smell and no need to wash it off. You must mix it through really well for about five minutes coating all the beef.

You can either let it rest for an hour then pre-cook it or just let it rest until an order comes in. I presume for home cooking so let it soak for 1 hour then cook it. Your beef will be tender but it should still be slightly chewy if you know what I mean. It should have the marbled effect on it. If your Chinese sells you beef dishes that are spongy and the beef looks smooth with no marbling then they have mucked up (for want of a better word) their processes.