Mongolian Beef with Sweet-Savory Sauce and Five Spice
By Lucas Morgan
Servings
4
Level
Easy
Precooked vegetables and sauce can be cooked with leftover marinated beef in a frying pan for a small- or large-batch meal․ Mongolian beef: Stir-fried sliced steak with red and other vegetables and onions in a sauce of ginger, garlic, hoisin sauce, five-spice powder, and other ingredients․
The beef is marinated with minced garlic and ginger and onion, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, toasted sesame oil, water, cornstarch, and oil․ Cornstarch mixed into the soy sauce before cooking helps distribute the soy sauce evenly․ Other seasonings added to the sauce include oyster sauce, honey, hoisin sauce, five-spice powder, and toasted sesame oil, which give the sauce a nutty and sweet flavor․
Prepare the beef and vegetables ahead of time to speed up the cooking process․ The sauce is ready when it changes color from a pale brown to a darker brown and has thickened to the point where it sticks to the other foods in the pan․ Overcrowding the pan is the most common problem people encounter when making this dish․ Brown the beef in batches to prevent steaming․
Serve stir-fried beef over rice or noodles․ Add green onions and sesame seeds as toppings․ Reheating leftover stir-fried beef is easiest if it is divided into individual portions after cooking․ Reheat leftovers containing beef and vegetables with sauce․ Serve green onions and sesame seeds as a topping at the table․
Why you'll love this recipe
- The beef, vegetables, and sauce can be prepared ahead of time because they are not mixed with other ingredients until the final cooking step, which lasts 1 minute, at the end of the recipe․
- Leftovers go well with rice and other noodle dishes because the meat and vegetables are already sauced and can be served as a complete meal․
- Freezer meals can be prepared as individual servings because the stir-fried dish is already combined․ Red pepper and onion will be soft after thawing․
- Batch cooking is easy, you can get multiple batches of sliced beef cooked in the same skillet without crowding, so that the beef browns well before assembly․
- Preparing the sauce in advance saves meal-prep time by stirring cornstarch into soy sauce before adding the remaining sauce ingredients․
- Two ways of preparing beef have different food preparation advantages, deep-fried beef is crispier, and pan-fried beef uses less cooking oil and has less cleanup․
Ingredients
- •beef steak (thinly sliced against the grain; flank, skirt, rib eye, or sirloin may be used)
- •white onion (sliced; yellow onion may be used)
- •red bell pepper (thinly sliced)
- •garlic (some grated for the marinade and some sliced for stir-frying)
- •ginger (some grated for the marinade and some sliced for stir-frying)
- •green onions (cut into 2-inch pieces; white parts sliced lengthwise)
- •soy sauce (for the marinade and sauce)
- •dark soy sauce (optional)
- •Shaoxing cooking wine (for the marinade and sauce)
- •water (for the marinade and sauce)
- •oil (for coating the beef and pan-frying or deep-frying)
- •toasted sesame oil (for the marinade and sauce)
- •cornstarch (for coating the beef and thickening the sauce)
- •oyster sauce
- •honey (sugar may be used instead)
- •sugar (optional alternative to honey)
- •hoisin sauce
- •Chinese five spice
- •hot sauce (optional)
- •sesame seeds (for garnish)
Instructions
- 1
Slice the ginger and garlic, then set them aside.
- 2
Cut the green onions into 2-inch pieces, slicing the white parts lengthwise.
- 3
Slice the white onion into separate pieces and set aside.
- 4
Thinly slice the red bell pepper and set aside.
- 5
Grate small pieces of ginger, garlic, and onion into a bowl.
- 6
Thinly slice the beef against the grain and add it to the bowl.
- 7
Add soy sauce, Shaoxing cooking wine, toasted sesame oil, and water, then mix well.
- 8
Marinate the beef for at least 15 minutes.
- 9
Spread out the marinated beef, mix in cornstarch, then add oil and mix well. Set aside.
- 10
Mix the cornstarch with soy sauce for the sauce.
- 11
Add the remaining sauce ingredients and water, mix well, and set aside.
- 12
For deep-frying, heat at least 1 inch of oil in a small pot over medium heat until a wooden chopstick or spoon bubbles when dipped in.
- 13
Deep-fry a few beef slices at a time for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on thickness, without overcrowding the pot.
- 14
Remove browned, crispy beef to a plate and repeat until all the beef is fried.
- 15
Alternatively, for pan-frying, heat a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat and add enough oil to coat the pan well.
- 16
Add the beef slices in batches, separating them in the skillet so they sear and brown rather than steam.
- 17
Remove the cooked, browned beef from the pan and set aside.
- 18
Heat the pan again over medium-high heat, add more oil, and toast the ginger for about 2 minutes.
- 19
Add the sliced garlic, red pepper, and onion, then stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes.
- 20
Stir the sauce, push the vegetables aside, and pour the sauce into the pan. Stir until it thickens and changes from milky brown to dark brown.
- 21
Add the beef and green onions, then stir-fry and coat everything with sauce for about 1 minute.
- 22
Remove and discard the ginger slices, plate the dish, and garnish with sesame seeds.
