Taiwanese stir-fry marinated beef with thai basil

15 MINUTES + MARINATING | SERVES 2 | EASY | LC

This recipe is inspired by a dish I had in the Tong Hua night market in Taipei last year. I stumbled across a ‘quick-fry 100’ restaurant, where every dish is 100 TWD (around £2.50). Typically, a quick-fry restaurant serves many dishes and has an emphasis on seafood – sometimes with up to 20 different types of seafood prepared in several ways. But this place focussed on marinated meat, with only six dishes on the menu – marinated lamb, marinated beef, two types of clams, snails and bean sprouts – all stir-fried with greens. The chef cooks in a wok right in front of you and the dishes arrive at your table smokinghot with amazing aromas.

oyster sauce 40g

garlic 1 clove, crushed

onion 40g, grated

black rice vinegar (chinkiang) 2 tsp

soy sauce 1 tsp

rapeseed oil 1 tsp, plus 2 tbsp

runny honey 1 tbsp

rib-eye steak 200g, thinly sliced

red bird’s-eye chilli 1, thinly sliced on an angle

thai basil a large bunch, leaves torn

fish sauce 2 tbsp

toasted rice powder 20g michiu rice wine or cooking sake 1 tbsp

steamed rice to serve

1 Mix together the oyster sauce, garlic, onion, black vinegar, soy sauce, 1 tsp of oil and the honey. Stir in the sliced steak so it’s well coated, then leave to marinate for a few hours at room temperature, or in the fridge overnight.

2 If the beef has been chilled, let it come to room temperature. Drizzle 2 tbsp of oil into a wok or large frying pan set over a high heat. Fry the chilli for 1 minute to release its aroma.

3 Tip the beef and any excess marinade into the wok and stir-fry for 2 minutes, ensuring the meat is cooked through.

4 When the beef is nearly done, stir through the basil and rice wine. Serve the stir-fry with steamed rice.

PER SERVING 185 kcals | fat 11.6G saturates 2.6G | carbs 8.7G | sugars 5.4G fibre 0.3G | protein 11.4G | salt 1.3G