HK-Style Beef Brisket with Daikon
蘿蔔炆牛腩
Serves 4 · Prep: 20 minutes · Cook: 2½ to 3 hours · Total: about 3 hours
For the days when you miss Hong Kong, this is the kind of bowl I want: soft beef brisket, big pieces of daikon, and a glossy chu hou sauce that makes plain rice feel like enough. The beef is good, obviously, but I'm mostly there for the daikon once it turns sweet and stained brown from the sauce. Scallions and cilantro on top, rice or noodles underneath, done.
Ingredients
Beef and daikon
- 2 lb beef brisket, beef finger meat, chuck, or shank
- 1 large daikon, peeled and cut into thick wedges
- 4 slices ginger
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 2 scallions, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons chu hou paste
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- 1 teaspoon sugar or a small piece of rock sugar
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 star anise
- 1 small piece dried tangerine peel (optional)
- 2½ to 3 cups water or beef stock
To finish
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water (optional)
- Sliced scallions
- Cilantro
Instructions
- 1
Blanch the beef
Cut the beef into large chunks. Put it in a pot with cold water, bring to a boil, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until foam rises. Drain, rinse the beef, and wash out the pot.
- 2
Parboil the daikon
Bring a separate pot of water to a boil. Add the daikon and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes, then drain. This takes off some of the raw bite and keeps the sauce cleaner.
- 3
Fry the aromatics
Heat oil in a clean pot over medium heat. Add ginger, garlic, and scallions. Stir for about 1 minute.
- 4
Fry the sauce base
Add the chu hou paste and stir for 30 seconds. Add oyster sauce, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, sugar, white pepper, star anise, and dried tangerine peel if using.
- 5
Braise the beef
Add the beef back to the pot and stir to coat it in the sauce. Add enough water or stock to almost cover the meat. Bring to a boil, then lower to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook for 1½ to 2 hours, until the beef is starting to get tender.
- 6
Add the daikon
Add the daikon and simmer for another 35 to 45 minutes, uncovered or partially covered, until the daikon is tender and the beef is soft.
- 7
Finish the sauce
Taste and adjust with a little more soy sauce, sugar, or white pepper. If you want the sauce glossier, stir in the cornstarch slurry and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes.
- 8
Serve
Top with scallions and cilantro. Eat with white rice, egg noodles, or wonton noodles.
Recipe notes
Cook’s notes
- Chu hou paste is the main flavor here. Without it, the dish still works, but it will taste less like the Hong Kong café version.
- The daikon should go in later, not at the beginning. It needs time to soak up the sauce, but not two full hours.
Make ahead & storage
- This is better after sitting for a bit. If you make it ahead, reheat gently and add a splash of water if the sauce gets too thick.
More recipes to try
Save this recipe, and any recipe from anywhere, in Shio.
Get Shio