Inspired by a recipe by Emma Knowles in Australian Gourmet Traveller.
Chinkiang vinegar is one of my favourite ingredients at the moment. You’ll probably need to go to an Asian grocery store or search online to find it. If you do make the effort, I also use it in my Kung Pao Chicken.
If you can’t be bothered, no probs, just use a cheap balsamic instead.
The picture has the beef served with cauliflower ‘rice’ but you could use steamed rice instead.
Chinese Chinkiang Beef
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 450 g ground (minced) beef
- 2-6 fresh red chilli peppers chopped
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Chinkiang or balsamic vinegar
- 1 bunch coriander (cilantro) leaves picked, to serve
- steamed rice or cauliflower ‘rice’, to serve
Instructions
- Heat a little oil in a large frying pan or wok. Add cumin and beef. Increase the heat to medium high and cook, stirring often until the beef is really well browned.
- Add the chillies and stir fry for another minute.
- Remove from the heat and add the soy and vinegar. Taste and season with extra soy and/or vinegar as needed. Serve with coriander (cilantro) leaves on top.
Variations
5 ingredients – just use the fennel seeds, beef, chilli, soy and chinkiang vinegar.
no chinkiang vinegar? – replace with balsamic – a cheaper one that isn’t too sweet.
vegetarian / vegan – replace beef with crumbled firm tofu, mushrooms or cooked lentils and consider adding a little more soy and vinegar (best to taste before adding more).
more veg – stir fry chopped broccoli, chinese broccoli, carrots, red capsicum (bell peppers), green beans or bok choy in a little oil. Remove from the pan then add back in once the beef is cooked.
no coriander (cilantro) – just skip it or replace with mint or basil.
different meat – lovely with pork or lamb. You could also use beef strips instead of minced meat. And will also work with chicken or turkey.
for cauli rice – just grate raw cauli in the food processor. I usually just serve it cold and let the hot meat warm it but you could stir fry it in the pan.
more substantial (carb lovers) – serve with steamed rice.
more substantial (low carb) – serve with cashews or peanuts.
Problem Solving Guide
bland – more soy sauce. more vinegar, more chilli or hot sauce.
too dry – next time use higher fat meat. for now a little extra virgin olive oil or some coconut oil will help.
too hot! – next time cut back on the chilli. For now serve with yoghurt or coconut milk to cool your palate. The active ingredient in chilli is fat soluble so you want something that will soak it up and remove it from your tongue – that’s why water won’t work.
meat sticking to the pan / wok – using a seasoned wok or non stick pan will avoid this. For now just remove from the heat and stir in the sauce and vinegar, the liquid will help release the meat. If it’s not quite working, a few tablespoons of water will help.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
ground cumin / fennel seeds / soy sauce / Chinkiang vinegar – keep in the pantry.
ground (minced) beef – freeze it.
chillies – will keep for weeks in a plastic bag in the fridge. Or can be frozen.
coriander (cilantro) – freeze it in a plastic bag.
cauliflower – ungrated cauli will keep for weeks in a plastic bag in the fridge. Can be frozen but the texture isn’t as good when defrosted.
Prepare Ahead
Yes! Just cook beef as per the recipe but keep the coriander and grated cauliflower / rice separately. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks or can be frozen. To serve warm stir fry in a frying pan or wok with a little oil. Warm cauliflower / rice separately or mix all together. Top with coriander leaves.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
Hello! Making this tonight and the waste avoidance strategy mentions an onion but the onion was not included in the recipe. When and how is the onion prepared?
Sorry for being confusing Claire – not sure where the onion came from. I’ve removed it 🙂
But if you did want to soften a diced onion in the frying pan before browning the beef you could. But it doesn’t need it
We ended up making it without the onion and it was delicious! Thanks for the quick response, in any case 🙂
Glad you enjoyed Claire 🙂
Will this be good without the chiles? I’m cooking for children too. Maybe add red pepper flakes at the end?
Yes it’s good without the chilli Rachel – I add the pepper flakes at the end for the adults 🙂