2 spices to avoid with beef
During the process of stewing or braising beef, there are two types of spices that many people use to cook: onions and black pepper. These are two very fragrant spices that many people think can eliminate the odor of beef, but they actually have the opposite effect, causing the beef to lose its unique flavor.
Onions and black pepper have a distinct flavor that masks the basic taste of beef, making the dish less delicious and even creating a dry sensation when eating the meat.
When stewing or braising beef, you only need to prepare simple ingredients such as beef, white radish, or pickles… Cut the beef into bite-sized pieces and put them in the pot. Add enough water along with sliced white radish, a little ginger, lemongrass, dried orange peel, and dried chili (if desired). Turn on the stove and boil the beef over high heat until it boils.
Then, reduce the heat to medium-low, simmer or braise for 30 minutes, and season with salt to taste. You can add a little soy sauce to enhance the flavor of the beef stew, cook for a while to let the salt and soy sauce penetrate. In this way, these spices when added to beef are not too strong, but have a gentle aroma that makes the meat delicious and appealing.
To have a tender and delicious beef stir-fry, follow these steps carefully.
Choose good beef
To prevent the stir-fried beef from being tough, first, you need to choose good-quality meat. For stir-frying, the best choice is the tenderloin because it will be sweet and tender, not tough, and has a beautiful color. It is best to buy fresh meat and avoid pieces that are dark red in color. If choosing a fatty piece, it is advisable to prioritize pieces of meat with yellow and firm fat, rather than soft fat, as it will be tougher.
For extra caution, check if the meat is still fresh by lightly pressing your finger against the meat. If it doesn’t stick to your finger and doesn’t have any unusual smell, it means the meat is fresh.
Thinly slice, in the right direction
To eliminate the odor of the meat, after buying it, you should wash it thoroughly with saltwater and pounded ginger, then use paper towels to pat it dry before slicing. You need to slice it thinly, the thicker the slices, the tougher the meat.
After slicing, you can use the back of a knife to gently pound the meat to tenderize it. For good-quality meat, this step is not necessary.
Marinate with cooking oil
For fresh meat, you only need to marinate it with a bit of seasoning powder, soy sauce, a few pounded garlic cloves, and ground black pepper. Add a tablespoon of cooking oil, mix well, and let it marinate for about 30 minutes, the meat will be tender and tasty. Do not add too much soy sauce or salt when marinating as it will make the meat moist and easy to dry out when stir-frying.
Hot wok, quick stir-fry
Remember that for beef stir-fry, you do not add oil to the pan and do not put the meat in until the pan is hot; this means you will not stir-fry the beef with hot oil as usual, but instead, use the oil that has been marinated in the meat beforehand.
Professional chefs explain that if you put raw beef in hot oil, this contact will cause a sudden temperature change, causing the beef to contract. This is the main reason why stir-fried beef becomes tough and sticks to the pan.
When stir-frying, turn the heat to high, but do not let the pan get too hot or the beef will be overcooked and no longer tender. Stir quickly, as soon as the meat is cooked, turn off the heat because if you stir-fry for too long, the meat will become chewy. If stir-frying with vegetables, stir-fry the beef separately, when the vegetables are cooked, add the beef, stir evenly, and then turn off the heat.
Quick and tender beef stew with a regular pot
Without a pressure cooker, you can still quickly stew beef to make it tender by using the following tips.
After buying the meat, wash it thoroughly, and cut it into slightly larger slices to fit the stew. Boil a moderate amount of water and add the beef, boil for about 3 minutes to remove any impurities, then remove the beef.
Note: When stewing beef, absolutely do not use cold water. If you want to add more water, you must use boiling water because cold water will make the meat tough and dry, making it difficult to eat. Therefore, the process will be to boil the meat to remove impurities, then boil another pot of boiling water and add the beef along with other spices to stew.
The next step is the most important, the secret to tender and quick stewed beef without being tough is to add a spoonful of white sugar to the pot when simmering with low heat. Adding sugar to the pot while stewing the beef can allow the water to penetrate into the meat faster, making the beef tender and flavorful.
After simmering over low heat for about 15-20 minutes, the beef is almost cooked. At this point, add a little salt to taste and simmer for an additional 5 minutes for the salt to soak in, then turn off the heat.