THE WOKS OF LIFE’S BEEF WITH BROCCOLI
Today, I made The Woks of Life’s beef with broccoli, and it was delicious. So much so, that my twin brother had requested that I make it again. This recipe serves 6. You can also serve it over shredded steamed cabbage, instead of rice.
- 1 lb of flank (or skirt) steak (sliced ¼-inch thick across the grain) (450 g)
- Mix the following and massage into the beef with your hands until all of the liquid is absorbed:
- ¼ teaspoon of baking soda, optional
- 3 tablespoons of water
- Marinade: Let marinade stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. *
- ½ tablespoon of cornstarch (or 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed + ¾ teaspoon of water)
- 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil (or regular olive oil)
- 1 teaspoon of oyster sauce (or fish sauce, or soy sauce)
- For the sauce mixture: mix the following together:
- ⅔ cup of fat-free vegetable broth, warmed
- ½ tablespoon of granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoon of soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon of dark soy sauce (or 1 teaspoon of regular soy sauce + 1/16 teaspoon of granulated sugar)
- 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce (or fish sauce, or soy sauce)
- ½ teaspoon of sesame oil (or vegetable oil, or regular olive oil)
- ⅛ teaspoon of ground white pepper
- Extra:
- 4 cups of broccoli florets
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable (or regular olive) oil plus extra
- ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder (or ½ teaspoon of granulated garlic)
- pinch of ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon of shaoxing wine (or 1 teaspoon of fat-free vegetable broth, or 1 teaspoon of water)
- 2 ½ tablespoons of cornstarch + 3 tablespoons of water (or ⅓ cup of ground flaxseed meal and 4 ⅛ teaspoons of water)
Set the sauce mixture aside.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and blanch 4 cups of broccoli florets (about one 12-to-16-ounce head of broccoli) for 30 – 60 seconds.
Drain and set aside.
Heat a wok over high heat until smoking.
Add 2 tablespoon of vegetable (or regular olive) oil and cook the beef for 2 – 3 minutes, making sure to sear both sides of the beef.
Turn off the heat, remove the beef from the wok, and set aside. Set the wok over medium heat and add another tablespoon of cooking oil along with ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder (or ½ teaspoon of granulated garlic) and a pinch of ground ginger.
Stir for 5 seconds.
Pour 1 tablespoon of shaoxing wine (or 1 teaspoon of fat-free vegetable broth, or 1 teaspoon of water) around the perimeter of the wok. Add the soy sauce mixture from earlier.
Stir the sauce around the sides of the wok to deglaze it. Bring the sauce to a simmer.
Stir 2 ½ tablespoon of cornstarch + 3 tablespoons of water (or ⅓ cup of ground flaxseed meal and 4 ⅛ teaspoons of water) into a slurry and drizzle it into the sauce (the flaxseed mixture won’t make a slurry, but it still works just as good, though. That’s what I used) while stirring constantly.
Let simmer for 20 seconds. Add the broccoli and seared beef (along with any juices from the beef).
Mix everything together over medium heat until the sauce coats the beef and broccoli.
*If the sauce is too thin, increase the heat and reduce the sauce further.
If the sauce is too thick, add ½ teaspoon of water. Anyway, serve and enjoy!
Recipe and photo: Krystal Mena
