Oh, Chinese takeout, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. Sesame Chicken. Soup dumplings. Egg rolls. Bao buns. Yum. But what I really, really can’t get enough of? Szechuan Beef, y’all.
I am caps-worthy OBSESSED.
Just thinking about the melt-in-your-mouth strips of meat, and the spicy perfection of the Szechuan sauce is making my mouth water. During one of my embarrassingly long research sessions on Pinterest, I discovered there aren’t that many recipes out there, considering it’s one of America’s favorite takeout dishes.
I didn’t let a little thing like that stop me from going deeeeep into my memory files and coming up with something that tastes pretty close to my favorite Chinatown restaurants.
This recipe takes about 35 mins to prepare, but if you purchase ready cut beef (the kind that says it’s perfect for chili) you can whip it together in 25 mins. Not too shabby for homemade fast food that’s gloriously gluten free and dairy free, and packed with TONS of flavor.
Kerri’s time-saving tips:
- Slice meat while it’s half frozen, it’ll cut faster without much mess.
- To make grating the ginger easier, grab a food processor and throw it in with a hit of olive oil to keep it from sticking to the sides and pulse until it’s minced well.
- If you’re making your own rice, start that after you prep the meat because it’ll take 20 mins. Always remember it’s 2 cups of water to every cup of rice, and don’t forget to salt the water. If you’re in a hurry – grab some white rice at a local Chinese restaurant on your way home from work!
Here’s what you’ll need:
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs. steak (I used NY Strip)
- 1 tablespoon liquid aminos or soy sauce (I use Bragg’s brand because it’s wheat-free)
- 1 tablespoon white wine
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons sesame oil
- 3 celery stalks, julienned
- 1/2 cup shredded carrots
- 3 green onions, sliced into 1/2 inch pieces, whites and all
- 1 inch fresh ginger, grated
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon 5 spice
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Sriracha
- 4 tablespoons liquid aminos (or soy sauce)
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Cut steak into 1/4 inch strips. If you’ve bought precut meat, then just toss it into a bowl and add the white wine and soy sauce. Mix until well coated, add the cornstarch and mix again. Let it marinate for ten minutes.
- Mix all your ingredients for the sauce in a bowl.
- Next put the sesame oil in a large pan (or wok) and turn it to medium heat. (You want the pan to slowly get hot while you’re prepping your veggies, if it starts smoking turn it down a little.)
- Slice your celery and green onions, grate the ginger, and measure your carrots, set aside on a plate.
- Divide beef into two batches and add your first to the now hot pan. The meat should just cover the bottom surface so you can cook it evenly. (Around 3-4 minutes per batch.) Remove beef to a paper towel lined plate and cook second batch.
- Turn heat up to high, add a hit of oil (if needed) and toss the veggies and ginger in. Stir every minute or so for 3-4 mins. Once they’ve reached your desired doneness (I prefer mine cooked through), add your Szechuan sauce and cook for an additonal minute.
- Toss in the beef, mix well and serve over white rice.
December 1, 2015 at 9:38 pm
What type of vinegar did you use- white, red and rice wine? Looks yummy!
December 1, 2015 at 9:39 pm
Or rice wine…sorry!
December 1, 2015 at 9:55 pm
Hi Kim — I used regular white vinegar that we had on hand and it came out SO good! you can definitely use rice wine vinegar if you’ve got that, but maybe add a little less to start. Hope you enjoy it!
December 6, 2015 at 12:39 pm
This looks yummy and easy to make. Looking for more recipes for my Hubster who loves his beef. Thank you Kerri!
December 6, 2015 at 2:44 pm
Thank you Mary Ann! It definitely tops the list of favorite dinners in our household 🙂 Hope you both enjoy it as much as we do!
December 28, 2015 at 9:43 am
Kerri thanks so much for sharing this. Its one of my favorites too and I cant wait to make it. Keep them coming !
Cynthia
January 5, 2016 at 11:01 pm
Thank you, Cynthia! I hope you love the recipe — it’s been a crowd pleaser with family and friends. 😀
January 7, 2016 at 8:41 pm
Came across this tonight and making it tomorrow! Looks too good!! Thanks
January 7, 2016 at 11:17 pm
yay! i can’t wait to hear what you think of it, Colleen! i think i might be making it again tomorrow or the next day too 😀
January 8, 2016 at 7:35 pm
Oh ma lordy! That was a hit with the whole fam. I gave the 4 and 6 yr old girls a teriyaki dipping sauce to cool it down. We added more red pepper flake amd chinese mustard. Heavenly!!
I used a filet flat iron cut. And it was amazing. 15 bucks and extremely tender.
Thanks! Cant wait to try more of yours!
January 8, 2016 at 8:27 pm
oh, good! i’m so happy that it was a hit with your family! the teriyaki dipping sauce sounds like it was a perfect addition!!! and that cut of steak sounds pretty darn heavenly too. can’t wait to hear about which recipe you try next! 😀
January 19, 2016 at 9:55 am
What is 5 spice ?
January 19, 2016 at 2:48 pm
Chinese 5 spice is basically just a blend of five spices (normally things like fennel, star anise, cloves, cinnamon, and a hot pepper like szechuan, but sometimes it’s got ginger instead of fennel, etc). you can pick some up in any chain grocery store, Walmart, or Asian market. it’s SO GOOD.
January 31, 2016 at 2:00 pm
OMG!! Made this for the kids last night and they literally fell in love 😍
Just too good😄
February 2, 2016 at 7:08 pm
yay! so thrilled it was a hit, Tarannam! thanks so much for the feedback — happy cooking! 😀
February 3, 2016 at 9:55 pm
This recipe was excellent! Made a stirfry out of it by doubling up on the carrots and celery and adding bok choy and red peppers, helped make the meat go a little further. Julienning the vegs looked nice, cooked up quickly. Really loved that sauce with the 5- spice, made it different than most I’ve tried. It’s my new “go-to” sauce for beef now, thanks for sharing!
February 6, 2016 at 8:12 pm
thank you for the wonderful feedback, Helene! doubling up on the veggies (and adding the bok choy and red peppers) sounds delish! really happy that you loved the sauce as much as i do! cheers to more cooking fun! 😀