J. Kenji López-Alt Breaks Down the Science of Stir-Fry | WIRED

Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry

Ingredients

• Beef, sliced into thin, even pieces against the grain; cook in batches of about ½ pound
• Broccoli, cut into even pieces
• Cold water, for washing the beef
• Lightly salted water, for blanching the broccoli
• Peanut oil, or another cooking oil

For each pound of beef:

• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon light soy sauce
• Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, sugar, and cornstarch; amounts not specified

Sauce: Oyster sauce and fermented sauce(s) are mentioned, but the full ingredients and amounts aren’t provided. The intended flavor is savory, salty, and sweet.

Equipment and Preparation

Use a carbon-steel wok, a pot for blanching, a bowl, and a strainer. Prepare all ingredients before heating the wok. The presenter recommends carbon steel because its seasoned black-oxide surface helps with nonstick properties and flavor.

Method

1. Prepare the beef. Slice it thinly against the grain. Put it in a bowl, cover with cold water, and massage it to release some of the myoglobin. Drain in a strainer and squeeze out the water well.
2. Marinate the beef. Work the baking soda, salt, and light soy sauce into the beef. Add the Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, sugar, and cornstarch, then mix thoroughly. Set aside for about 15 minutes or longer. The presenter says washing is the biggest contributor to tenderness, while a longer rest gives the marinade ingredients more time to work.
3. Prepare the broccoli. Spread it in a single layer so moisture can evaporate. Blanch it in lightly salted water at a full boil for less than a minute, just until bright green, then remove it.
4. Heat the wok. Preheat the carbon-steel wok over the highest heat until very hot. Add oil immediately before the food, swirl it around, and start cooking promptly. Oil left sitting in an extremely hot wok can develop burnt, acrid flavors.
5. Cook in batches. Add the food in batches—about ½ pound at a time on a sufficiently powerful stove—and toss rather than constantly stir. Cook until mostly done and lightly browned in spots. If the food turns wet or bubbles instead of stir-frying, use smaller batches.
6. Cook the broccoli. Stir-fry the blanched broccoli in batches, then remove it from the wok.
7. Finish with sauce. Add the sauce at the end and toss to coat.

Technique Tips

• Keep ingredients dry. Evaporating moisture takes substantial heat, and excess moisture can prevent food from browning and vegetables from staying crisp.
• To toss, tilt the wok forward and push, then tilt and pull it back so the food rolls over itself.
• The bottom of the wok is its hottest area, where food heats through contact with the metal. Tossing also helps moisture evaporate.
• Restaurant burners can be much hotter than home burners. On a weaker stove, cook smaller batches to avoid stewing or simmering.
• Oyster sauce provides inosinate, which the presenter says amplifies the savory effect of glutamic acid from fermented sauces.

The presenter serves and tastes the beef and broccoli, describing the meat as tender and the broccoli as bright green.

Presenter and Source

Chef and food-science writer J. Kenji López-Alt demonstrates the recipe in a WIRED video. He is described as having written a book on woks, but the subtitles do not name the book or provide other specific source details.