Chinese Beef and Carrot Stir-Fry
胡萝卜炒牛肉
Carrots deserve a little more attention in a stir-fry! Cut them into thin strips and they soften just enough to bend around the beef, with a little sweetness left in every bite. There’s garlic, a few scallions, and enough soy sauce to make the rice underneath worth fighting over.
Keep the beef slices THIN, and cook them separately from the carrots. The carrots need a head start; the beef needs a brief trip back through the sauce. Have the rice ready before you heat the pan.
- Total
- 33 minutes
- Serves
- 2
Before you cook
Cut across the grain
Find the long lines in the beef and slice across them, about ⅛ inch thick. A thin slice cut in the wrong direction can still be chewy.
Keep the carrot strips even
Aim for matchsticks about ⅛ inch thick. Thick batons take longer to soften than the beef needs to cook.
Recipe
Chinese Beef and Carrot Stir-Fry
- Prep
- 20 minutes
- Cook
- 10 minutes
- Rest
- 3 minutes
- Total
- 33 minutes
- Serves
- 2
Ingredients
For the beef
For the sauce
For the stir-fry
Instructions
- 1
Marinate the beef
Toss the sliced beef with the light soy sauce and water until the liquid is mostly absorbed. Add the cornstarch, mix until the slices feel lightly coated, then stir in the oil. Set aside for 15 minutes while you cut the carrots and prepare the sauce.
- 2
Prepare the carrots and sauce
Cut the carrots into thin matchsticks, keeping the pieces about the same thickness. Slice the garlic and separate the scallion whites from the greens. Stir all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl and keep everything beside the stove.
- 3
Sear the beef in batches
Heat a wide skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon oil. Spread half the beef in a single layer; leave it for 45 seconds, then turn and cook for another 30 to 45 seconds. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining beef. It will finish cooking in the sauce.
- 4
Give the carrots a head start
Add the remaining tablespoon oil to the skillet, followed by the carrots. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, then add the 2 tablespoons water and cover for 1 minute. Uncover and stir until the water has evaporated. The strips should bend when lifted but still have a little bite.
- 5
Finish with the beef and sauce
Add the garlic and scallion whites to the carrots and stir for 30 seconds. Return the beef and its juices, stir the sauce again, and pour it in. Toss for 1 to 2 minutes, until the sauce lightly coats the food and the beef is cooked through. Add a splash of water if the sauce tightens before the beef finishes.
- 6
Add the scallion greens and serve
Check that the thickest beef slice reaches 145°F, then stir in the scallion greens and take the skillet off the heat. Let the stir-fry rest for 3 minutes before serving. Spoon the carrots, beef, and sauce over rice; the carrots should still hold their shape.
Chinese Beef and Carrot Stir-Fry
For this step
All ingredients · 17
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Choosing and slicing the beef
Flank steak and sirloin both work. If the meat slides around as you cut, chill it briefly until firmer. Slice across the visible muscle fibers, and cut long slices into bite-size pieces.
A wide skillet gives the beef room to brown. If liquid collects during searing, remove the beef and let that liquid evaporate before starting the carrots.
Swaps and shortcuts
No Shaoxing wine: Use the same amount of water. No white pepper: Use black pepper; the flavor will be a little different.
Bagged matchstick carrots: Use the same weight and check their thickness. Thicker pieces may need another minute under the lid before the beef returns.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you keep beef tender in a carrot stir-fry?
Slice it thinly across the grain, give it the short cornstarch marinade, and cook it separately while the carrots soften. Return it only for the final sauce step.
Should carrots be cooked before the beef?
Sear the beef first and move it to a plate. Then cook the carrots until almost tender before returning the beef. Leaving both in the pan for the whole time makes it harder to control their different cooking times.
Can I use grated carrots?
Matchsticks hold up better. Coarsely grated carrots cook more quickly and release more liquid, so skip the covered steaming step and watch them closely.
