riacmt@ubvmsa.cc.buffalo.edu (Carol Miller-Tutzauer) (08/08/90)
In article <1990Jul17.162641.5716@mthvax.cs.miami.edu>, tonse@csa2.lbl.gov (Shaheen Tonse) writes... > >beef. Now I am stuck in Geneva where there is none. Does anyone know a >recipe? Shaheen Tonse. When my husband first started cooking, he decided to learn Chinese cuisine. His favorite Chinese dish at the time was Mongolian beef. Well we looked everywhere then (Chinese wasn't as big then as now) but it was 4 years later that he stumbled upon what he calls the "BEST MONGOLIAN BEEF RECIPE IN THE WORLD"! Well here it is: Mongolian Beef -- Taken from Szechuan & Northern Cooking: From -------------- Hot to Cold by Rhoda Yee (Pub by Taylor & Ng, San Francisco, 1982) 3/4 lb flank steak Meat marinade: 1-2 egg whites, lightly beaten 1 T cornstarch 2 t oil 1 t sherry 1/2 t salt A few dashes of white pepper Sauce mixture: 4 T Kikkoman (or equivalent) soy sauce 1 1/2 T sugar 1 T dark soy sauce 1 T sesame oil 1 T sherry 1 t white vinegar 1/2 t hot bean sauce 1/2 t sweet bean sauce 1/2 to 1 t dried chili pepper, crushed 2 to 3 T garlic, minced 1/2 oz. (1 small package or less) bean thread 6 large green onions, cut into 1-inch lengths 3 to 5 (or less for mild) dried chili peppers 2 c oil 1 t cornstarch mixed with 2 t water Preparation: Cut flank steak cross-grain into 1/8-inch slices. Mix with meat marinade. Combine sauce ingredients. Cooking: In wok, heat 1 1/2 cups oil to very hot. Deep fry bean threads (they will puff up instantly). (Warning: Do only a few of the DRY bean threads -- alias cellophane noodles -- at a time; they expand dramatically.) Set fried bean threads aside on paper toweling. Add the remaining 1/2 cup oil (this is to cool down the oil already in the wok). Make sure it is now no hotter than 250 deg Farenheit. To test, place a piece of beef in the oil. It should just BARELY sizzle. Deep fry beef in two separate batches until just done, about 10 seconds. Drain off all but 2 T oil. Throw in the 3 or so dried chili peppers (if desired). Pour in sauce mixture and let it reduce for 2 minutes over high heat. Add beef and stir until well mixed. If the sauce appears a bit thin, add a little of the cornstarch/water mixture to thicken. Add green onions for 15 seconds. Place beef on top of bean threads and serve. Comments: This is a wonderfully rich and velvety dish. The beef is cooked by the velveting method and, if done properly, will melt in your mouth. I tried stir frying the beef instead of using the velveting method and it didn't have the same texture. If you have two woks, cook the sauce in one while cooking the beef in the other. It'll go much faster. If the taste is too hot, decrease the chili peppers. Also, you can omit serving this on the bed of fried bean threads. Though they are very good because they sop up the great sauce. Carol