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It’s all cleaned out now. The previous owners took care of decontamination (a tenant was the culprit.) The house was condemned by the state right away after the test came back. I was worried they would raze it to the ground! I’m so glad they were able to get it scrubbed, because the house is so cool!
It was such a nice change of pace! It’s always so much more fun to clean someone else’s house than to clean your own, you know?? Why is that? If I had half that amount of energy for organizing my own house, we would be eating off the floor over here.
But alas, my 4 children conspire against me daily. Just yesterday I found a baggie of goldfish smashed all over the carpet upstairs, exactly 30 seconds before I had to be in a zoom meeting. You better believe I just left that nonsense right there. Hi, welcome to my house, would you like to clean it? Because I REFUSE.
Honestly guys, I’ve never been a huge Beef and Broccoli fan. I love beef, and I love broccoli, so what’s my deal?? Turns out it’s the sauce I wasn’t in love with, which can sometimes be overwhelmingly sweet, cloyingly thick, or overly…fishy?
Oyster sauce is pretty magical stuff, and an absolutely essential ingredient for classic Beef and Broccoli. It adds amazing umami flavor, so I didn’t want to leave it out. I love this article all about Oyster Sauce, and reading about how it was made accidentally back in 1888 when someone left Oyster soup on to cook for too long 😂 .
It’s a very concentrated sauce that really amps up the flavor of Beef and Broccoli, I just wanted it to be less of a highlight and more of an accent, if that makes sense. Sarah adjusted the final recipe to have a little less Oyster sauce, and I was absolutely astonished by how much I loved it the next time I made it. The final dish is well balanced; not too sweet, not too salty, but just a perfect blend of rich flavors that is so uniquely Chinese, you will feel like you’re sitting in the restaurant. (Where are my fortune cookies??)
Then we are breaking the cardinal rule of meat butchering: we’re going to slice this baby WITH THE GRAIN. Just once, like this.
THEN we slice against the grain. The first long cut was so that we don’t have like 10 inch long strips of beef. Cutting against the grain means that your knife is perpendicular to where the lines of the meat are running. Can you see it in the photo above?
Meat is made up of long strands, and cutting against the grain means that our KNIFE is doing a lot of the cutting work, instead of relying only on our poor omnivorous teeth. Cutting a fantastic piece of meat very poorly will result in meat that has a chewy, tough texture no matter how much it cost, or how well you cooked it.
Toss your beef into the marinade for a few minutes. This marinade is so stupid easy, it’s just 3 ingredients: cornstarch, low sodium soy sauce, and Shaoxing wine. I had never heard of this wine before! It’s a classic ingredient in Chinese cooking. I had a heck of a time finding it! You can buy it online here, or an international market is probably your best bet. Shaoxing wine is of course traditional and brings the most authentic flavor, but I subbed Sherry cooking wine, and thought it tasted amazing.
Also, have you heard about cornstarch marinades in Chinese cooking? It’s a technique called “velveting” because the cornstarch reacts with the meat and basically acts as a meat tenderizer. It makes the beef so, so tender and perfect.
Take a hot minute to chop up your broccoli, before things get real over on the stove. If at this point you decide “I want more vegetables!” you could totally slice up some mushrooms, carrots, or peppers to cook along with the broccoli. It’s your thing, do what you wanna do.
Don’t forget the rice. Start the rice now, before we cook the beef, so it has time to steam. Did you catch my last post all about how I make rice for my family? It’s so easy. I usually make white rice for the kids and Cauliflower Rice (or Asian Cauliflower Rice) for me and Eric, because we like to eat low-carb dinners most nights. I often buy the pre-riced frozen cauliflower, because it’s so easy, just heat it up in a pan with some oil and salt.
Now it’s time to sear!
I love to sear my beef in half veggie oil, half sesame oil. Sesame oil is strong but I love love love the flavor. You can skip it and use regular oil if you like.
Whichever way you sear it, just make sure you are leaving enough space in the pan! The meat strips should not be touching each other. If you crowd them all in at once, it will cook but it will not get brown, and you miss out on tons of flavor. It’s so tragic. Don’t do it. Sear in batches and be patient.
You don’t even have to be that patient, this meat is so thin that it cooks in about 1 minute for each side! Remove it all to a plate and make way for some broccoli.
I also saute my broccoli in half sesame oil, half veggie oil. It’s so good! The other tip for doing the broccoli is to stir the pan constantly, and add water 1 tablespoon at a time. The pan is so hot by this point that the broccoli may start to scorch before it’s cooked all the way through. If you add water, a little bit at a time, it will sizzle and evaporate right away, creating steam that helps cook the broccoli. Keep going 2-3 minutes until you see the florets change color to a darker green. We want crisp-tender, not mushy!
Here are all the ingredients for the final sauce. It’s oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, chili garlic paste, brown sugar, sesame oil, cornstarch, and salt and black pepper It’s sooo good.
Add the meat back to the pan, douse the whole thing in sauce, stir it up, let’s goooooo
Don’t forget all the goods! Green onions, sesame seeds, Asian Marinated Cucumber Salad, and some sriracha mayo to round it all out. I’m tellin you guys.
Asian Cauliflower “Rice” » I can eat this stuff by the shovelful. Not rice, but totally delicious! Copycat PF Chang’s Lettuce Wrap Recipe » knock everyone’s socks off with this amazing appetizer Sheet Pan Chicken Fried Rice » throw this in the oven while you’re using the stovetop Asian Seared Chicken with Stir Fried Green Beans » more low carb Asian goodness! Easy Sesame Noodles with Spring Veggies » I could drink this sesame peanut sauce, no joke Marinated Asian Cucumber Salad » cool, refreshing, and the perfect side Thai Mango Sweet Sticky Rice from Joyous Apron Banana Lumpia from Ono Hawaiian Recipes
Sometimes leftover rice can be dry, but if you heat it up in the microwave along with the beef and broccoli, the moisture from your main dish will help freshen up the rice. You can also sprinkle a teaspoon or so of water on the rice and it helps a ton. Read more about reheating rice here.
Chinese Beef and Broccoli Soup » too cold outside for anything but soup? make this version! Easy Curry Beef Recipe » it’s just waiting for you to scoop it up with some pillowy naan Crockpot Beef Barley Soup » a family favorite recipe of ours, for cold winter days Old Fashioned Beef Stroganoff Recipe » this is so comforting and nostalgic! Traditional Carne Guisada Tacos » slow cook your way to saucy taco happiness Instant Pot or Crock Pot Gyro Beef » I love doing Greek night this way! Old Fashioned Swiss Steak from My Homemade Roots Pepper Steak from Laura in the Kitchen
