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Recipe Thursday

Today’s recipe is more of a technique than an actual recipe. As usual, there’s a story leading up to this technique. It all started one day about 6 months ago when I was eating beef with string beans from my favorite Chinese restaurant and a lightbulb went off above my head. Why could I easily digest beef from a Chinese restaurant and have issues elsewhere? The beef is so tender and moist and did I fail to mention DELICIOUS?

I decided to turn to my favorite source of information: Google. Low and behold, I found an answer to my query: velveting the meat. Here’s how it works:

Choose whatever animal- based protein you want (chicken, beef, pork). Put the meat in the freezer for a short time to make it easier to slice thinly. If you choose beef, slice against the grain for best results. For each pound of protein, you need 1tbsp. of baking soda dissolved in ½ cup of water. Once this is done, add the protein and squish it with your hands so the solution is on all of the protein then refrigerate it for 15 minutes. Transfer the meat to a colander and rinse well. Dry the meat on paper toweling before cooking it (or you will end up boiling it).

That’s it, my friends. You now know the secret to the most tender stir fry you will ever eat. You can use a wok, or just a hot pan to cook in. I cook the protein first, then add the vegetables (which I have pre-steamed for 8 minutes in my microwave. You can buy pre-made sauces if you wish, or be creative and make your own. If you are using sauce, add it last, stir to evenly coat the food, cover for 3-4 minutes, then serve over a bed of rice or eat as is.

Try this and let me know what you think!

Happy Cooking,

Shereen Rios BAS, CPT