Sichuan Cumin Beef with Peppers
Toasted cumin, numbing peppercorn, and beef that hits the wok in one layer and leaves it four minutes later.
Why it works
Sliced thin across the grain and tossed with cornflour, the beef takes a coat that seizes on hot metal, so it browns instead of stewing. The whole spices go in after the peppers, where twenty seconds in hot oil wakes the cumin without scorching it. The noodles soften in a bowl of boiling water off to one side, so nothing has to wait for the hob.
Method
- Boil the kettle and put the noodles in a large heatproof bowl, covered with boiling water, stirring once to separate them. Toss the beef with the cornflour, 1 tbsp of the soy and the Shaoxing in a bowl. Cut everything else before you light the hob.
- Heat the wok until a bead of water skitters and vanishes. Add 1 tbsp oil, then half the beef in one layer. Leave it 45 seconds, until the underside is deeply browned, toss 30 seconds, and tip onto a plate. Repeat with the rest.
- Add the remaining oil with the peppers, onion and beans. Stir-fry 3 minutes, to blistered black patches and flesh that is still squeaky.
- Push the vegetables up the side. Drop the cumin, chilli flakes and Sichuan pepper into the oil at the base for 20 seconds, until fragrant, then the garlic and ginger for 20 more.
- Return the beef and its juices with the last of the soy. Toss 30 seconds, until the wok is dry and glossy rather than wet. Off the heat, fold through the spring onions and coriander.
- Drain the noodles and divide them between four warm bowls. Spoon the beef and peppers over with every scrap left in the wok, and toss at the table.
For the toddler
Both the soy and the numbing pepper are in from the start, so theirs is cooked apart. At step 1, before you toss the beef with the soy and cornflour, set aside a few slices with a handful of pepper and beans and fry them in a little plain oil in a small pan for two minutes. No chilli, no Sichuan pepper and no soy on their plate. Chop the beef finely and cut the noodles up.
How the toddler notes workChef’s notes
Lamb leg steak is the original Xinjiang version and behaves identically. Torn king oyster mushrooms need 3 minutes.
Freeze the beef for 15 minutes before slicing; it cuts thin in half the time.
Smacked cucumber with black vinegar and garlic, and chilli oil for anyone who wants the heat pushed further.
Keeps 2 days chilled. Reheat in the wok for 60 seconds, or eat it cold.