While wandering the aisles of our local grocery store without a plan, we happened upon a display of thinly sliced, tenderized beef. What to make? Tacos? Sandwiches? Stir-fry ultimately won out.
Quickly cooked beef, with an abundance of vegetables tucked in a wrapper, moo shu style, ranks among the family’s favorite take-out dinners. Easy enough to make at home if you have all the ingredients. The recipe that follows relies on very thinly sliced beef for quick-cooking tenderness and an assortment of thin sticks of vegetables.
Eileen Yin-Fei Lo, a renowned cookbook author, tells us in “Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking” that this universally popular dish originated in the kitchens of the imperial court in Beijing. There, the cooks put great effort into the precise cutting of everything to show their effort.
Although I like to treat my family like royalty, I take shortcuts in the prep here. Shredded cabbage provides the bulk of the vegetables. Add in a bit of shredded bok choy if desired. Packaged, shredded carrots get added along with sliced, canned bamboo shoots.
Lean beef that has been trimmed and tenderized offers up big flavor with a short cook time. Some butchers send tough steaks through a needling machine to break up tough tissue. Alternatively, you can put trimmed steaks, such as skirt and flank, between sheets of heavy plastic wrap and pound them thin with a meat mallet to 1/4-inch thickness. Pork tenderloin and boneless skinless chicken thighs can replace beef if desired.
The trick to cooking lean beef, and other lean protein, is to use high heat to generate browning, which translates to flavor. Cook the meat in batches so there’s direct contact with the hot surface of the pan.
When it comes to wrappers, look for paper-thin moo shu wrappers, also known as spring roll wrappers, in the freezer section of Asian markets. Thin flour tortillas or ready-made crepes work just as well. The wrappers heat nicely in a covered dish or wrapped in plastic in the microwave oven.
Spicy Moo Shu Beef With Vegetables
Note: Ask the butcher to tenderize the steak for you or pound it yourself with a meat mallet. The scrambled eggs here are optional, but add a lovely texture that is worth the effort.Makes 4 servings
- 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon each: rice vinegar, cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon Asian chile paste with garlic or red pepper hot sauce or gochujang chile paste
- 1 pound trimmed beef steak, such as skirt, flank, or sirloin
- 4 green onions, trimmed
- 1 cup (2 ounces) thinly sliced fresh shitake mushroom caps (no stems)
- 4 cups shredded cabbage (such as Napa) or bok choy or a combination
- 1 cup finely shredded carrots
- 1/2 of an 8-ounce can sliced bamboo shoots, drained, rinsed
- 1 cup fresh bean sprouts, well rinsed, optional
- 3 or 4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 tablespoons refrigerated ginger puree or finely chopped fresh ginger
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten, optional
- Vegetable oil for high-heat cooking, such as expeller pressed canola oil, sunflower, or safflower oil
- Serving: 12 moo shu wrappers, or thin flour tortillas or crepes
For the stir-fry, pound the steak on a cutting board with a meat mallet to 1/4-inch thickness. Use a very sharp knife to thinly slice the steak, across the grain, into thin matchsticks. Cut green onions crosswise into 2-inch lengths. Cut the pieces into thin matchsticks
Prepare the mushrooms, cabbage, carrots, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, cilantro, garlic, and ginger. If using, beat the eggs together in a small bowl. Have all the ingredients near the cooking surface. Put the moo shu wrappers in a covered microwave-safe dish or wrap in plastic wrap.
Heat a wok or large well-seasoned cast-iron skillet over medium heat until hot enough to make a drop of water sizzle on contact. Add 1 tablespoon oil, then add the beaten eggs. Scramble with a heatproof spatula until soft curds form, then remove to a plate.
Add 1 more tablespoon oil to the pan. Increase the heat under the pan to medium-high. Add 1/3 of the beef and stir-fry until browned and golden on the edges, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate. Repeat with remaining beef adding more oil as needed.
Add 1 more tablespoon oil to the pan and add the mushrooms, garlic, and ginger; stir-fry 1 minute. Add the cabbage, carrots, and bamboo shoots. Stir-fry until vegetables are crisp-tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Return the beef to the pan along with the sauce. Cook and stir until hot. Add cooked eggs, green onions, and bean sprouts. Stir briefly. Remove from heat. Sprinkle with cilantro.
Microwave the wrappers on high (100 percent powder) until hot, about 1 minute. Serve beef mixture with wrappers. Roll up and serve.
