Braised Beef with 5-Spice

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 kg of stewing beef, cut into two-inch cubes 
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup of flour
• 4 tbsps of cooking oil
• 1/4 cup of roughly chopped scallions (onion leaves)
• 1 tbsp of minced garlic
• a generous knob of ginger, julienned
• 2 bird’s eye chilis, chopped
• 1 tsp five spice powder (or 2 star anise, 1 cinnamon bark, 1/2 tsp fennel seeds and 1/2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns)
• 4 cloves
• a generous splash of rice wine
• 2 cups of beef broth
• 4 tbsps of dark soy sauce
• 4 tbsps of dark brown sugar
• salt, to taste
• finely sliced scallions, to garnish

Directions:

Place the beef in a single layer in a container with a tight lid. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Sprinkle the flour on the meat, cover the container tightly and shake to coat each piece of meat with flour. Alternatively, use a resealable plastic bag.

Heat the cooking oil in the pan. Brown the beef in batches.

When all the beef had been browned, saute the aromatics. Reheat the cooking oil in the pan and add the ginger, garlic, scallions, chilis, cinnamon bark, star anise, cloves, fennel seeds and Sichuan peppercorns (of the five-spice powder, if that’s what you’re using). Cook, stirring often, until fragrant, about two minutes.

Pour in the rice wine. Scape the bottom of the pan to loosen the brown bits. Allow the rice wine to almost evaporate, about a minute.

Return the browned beef to the pan. Pour in the broth and soy sauce. Add the sugar. Stir. Taste the sauce and add salt, as needed (I don’t recommend adding more soy sauce because that will make the dish too dark and rather unattractive).

Cook until the meat is tender.

Serve the braised beef hot with rice.