Sichuan spicy beef stew

Adapted from Yi Reservation

We like to read the blog of Yi from Yi Reservation. This recipe for spicy sichuan beef stew is based on his (紅燒牛肉). We also used tips we have learned from J. Kenji Lopez-Alt at Serious Eats in his recipe for Real Deal Kung Pao Chicken. We found Yi’s recipe a little tricky to follow so we adapted it to our format and tweaked it to accentuate flavour and refine the texture.

If you are not familiar with sichuan peppers and their delightful numbing effect, then this may be a good recipe to try. The level of pepper spice is relatively mild but there is certainly no point to leaving them out; there are other beef stews you could make which don’t have the spice.

Yi’s original recipe allowed for radish to be substituted for the potato. We like the way the potato soaks up the flavour of the liquid and releases starch which thickens the sauce. Little sticks of pickled radish are delicious, though, as they brighten the savoury flavour.

Time

13 hours total: 30 minutes attended, 12 hours 30 minutes unattended

Storage notes

Keeps in the fridge for up to 5 days 

Difficulty

easy 

Special requirements

sous vide 

Yield

1600 g (servings 4 )

Ingredients
Weight
Volume
Procedure
A
Beef, tough cut*; excess fat trimmed
800 g
2 lb
Water
as needed
1
Bring water to boil in a large pot.
2
Blanch meat for 15 seconds then quickly rinse under cold water. Pat dry thoroughly.
3
(Optional) Store in fridge, uncovered, for at least 4 hours then transfer to freezer for 1 hour.
B
Oil, peanut
42 g
3 tbs
4
Heat in a large pan over high heat until just smoking. Reduce heat to medium.
5
Brown meat on two sides, 1 minute each side.
6
Remove meat from pan and set aside.
7
Reduce heat to low.
C
Garlic, roughly chopped
15 g
5 cloves
Ginger, sliced 0.1" / 3 mm
9 g
4 slices
8
Add to pan and sauté until aromatic, about 30 seconds.
D
Chinese cooking wine
60 g
¼ cup
9
Add to pan and deglaze. Stir to combine.
E
Sichuan chilli bean paste☨
30 g
2 tbsp
Soy sauce
32 g
2 tbsp
Sugar, raw
9 g
2 tsp, packed
0
Add to pan and cook until sugar is dissolved and mixture is aromatic, about 2 minutes.
F
Beef stock
500 g
2 cups
Star anise
5 g
4 regular
Dried chili
3 g
6 small
Cinnamon
3 g
1 small
Fennel seeds
2 g
1 tsp, whole
Cloves
0.5 g
2 each
Dried orange peel
2 g
1 strip
Bay leaves
2.4 g
4 leaves
Cardamom
1 g
2 pods
Sichuan peppercorn, toasted in hot skillet for 30 seconds until fragrant
3 g
1 tsp, whole
-
Add to pan and stir to combine thoroughly.
=
Boil 2 minutes.
q
Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool to below 80°C / 176°F, about 5 minutes.
w
Cut meat into 1" / 2.5 cm cubes. Add to pan and stir to combine.
e
Vacuum seal and cook sous vide at 78°C / 172°F for 12 hours.
r
Strain bag juices into a sauce pan and bring to boil for 3 minutes.
t
Strain again through a fine mesh, muslin or cheesecloth and return to pan.
y
Meanwhile, separate meat and whole spices. Discard spices and reserve meat warm wrapped in foil.
G
Potato; peeled and cut into ⅘" / 20 mm cubes
400 g
3 medium
u
Add to pan and bring to boil.
i
Cook over high heat until liquid has reduced and potato is tender, about 30 minutes.
o
Reduce heat to low and allow mixture to cool, about 5 minutes.
p
Add meat to pan to gently reheat. Stir carefully to combine.
H
Salt
to taste
[
Add to pan and stir carefully to combine.
]
Divide stew among serving plates.
I
Scallions, finely sliced
to taste
Coriander, leaves
to taste
Radish, lightly pickled, cut into matchsticks
to taste
\
Garnish.

Type stew

Author

Yield

g

Servings

Serving size 400 g

Serve

Per
serve
Energy (kcal)450.1
Energy (kJ)1885
Protein (g)46.2
Fat (g)17.6
Carbs (g)25.4
Sugars (g)3
Fiber (g)2.8
Sodium (mg)877.8
Cholesterol (mg)129.6

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