There are days where photographing your food is difficult. That was the case with this Mongolian Beef recipe that we prepared this week. It wasn’t that the food was hard to photograph, it was that the Mongolian Beef was so darn delicious that I had a hard time stealing a plate away from my family so I could take a picture of it.
I am one of those people that finds one dish that she likes when she goes out to eat and sticks to it all the way. When I order Chinese, the only dish I want is my Chicken Lo Mein. I rarely browse the menu, for fear I might waste an opportunity to eat out on a dish that isn’t as good as my old standby.
My girlfriends have been bragging about a recipe that they discovered on Pinterest for Mongolian Beef. I decided this might be a fun way to switch up my Chinese food routines and try something new.
This Mongolian Beef is so divine that I felt like we were eating out at P.F. Chang’s, but at a small fraction of the price. The sweetness from the brown sugar in the sauce mixed with the saltiness of the soy sauce and then finished with the heat from red pepper flake are truly a perfect balance in flavors. We served this over rice and with a side of steamed broccoli, to add a little green and crunch to our plates.
I highly recommend giving this recipe a try for your next Chinese food craving night! I am already thinking about the delicious leftovers I get to have for lunch today and can’t wait to eat this again!
- 2 pounds flank steak, thinly sliced crosswise
- ⅔ cup cornstarch
- 6 teaspoons of canola or vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic (I use bottled minced garlic)
- 1 cup of water
- 1 cup soy sauce
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 3 large green onions, sliced crosswise into thirds (we omitted because we don’t like onions)
- Slice your flank steak crosswise into thin strips. Pat your meat dry with a paper towel and then toss the meat with cornstarch, making sure each piece is coated thoroughly. Place the meat into a strainer and shake off any excess cornstarch from the meat.
- Heat half of the oil in a large wok at medium-high and add the garlic and ginger. Allow this to cook for one minute.
- Add soy sauce, water, brown sugar and pepper flakes. Cook the sauce for about 2 minutes and transfer to a bowl. The sauce will be thin, but will later thicken in the cornstarch.
- Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the remaining oil to the wok.
- Divide your meat into two batches. Add the first batch of beef and cook, stirring until it is all browned. Remove this meat and then cook your second batch.
- Place all of the meat back into the wok. Pour the sauce back into the wok and let it cook along with the meat.
- Cook the sauce down for three to five minutes to reduce.
- Finish by adding your green onions and cook for one minute.
- Serve it hot with rice and a side of steamed broccoli.
Adapted from Pink Bites
oh what a cute little rice bowl!
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Amy Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 12:05 pm
My hubby got me those for from Anthropologie for a Christmas gift! They are all different patterns! Happy Monday, Ingrid!
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Ok, we need to go out for Chinese sometime together! Lo mein is also my favorite!!!
xo
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Amy Reply:
August 14th, 2012 at 8:17 am
Yes, we must! Maybe an after Christmas treat
xoxo
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Amy!!
We tried this dinner last night! Kev said it was AMAZING! We both thought it tasted just like a PF Chang’s dish. So delicious!!
Love,
Leah
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Amy Reply:
August 29th, 2012 at 11:43 am
I am so glad it was such a hit, Leah! I have never had P.F. Chang’s Mongolian Beef before, but I am happy to hear I am not missing anything now
xo
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Hi Amy – this is the third recipe I’ve tried from your site and it was delicious! Just one comment – we have a family of 5 and 2 lbs was a lot for us so I would say that the recipe can be halfed without problems and save a little money! Thank you so much for the delicious recipe! We loved it!
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Amy Reply:
February 27th, 2013 at 9:21 am
Great note, Claire! I agree that this makes a large batch. I am always thankful for those delicious leftover. We made that this week for our own family and I have some tucked away in the fridge for tonight. So happy to hear that THREE of the recipes here have been a success. You made my day! xo
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