Q: What do you call a cow with no front legs?
A: Lean beef

Q: What do you call a cow with no legs at all?
A: Ground beef

Mongolian Beef, which evidently is not of Mongolian origin, is a salty-sweet Chinese-American restaurant staple. Thin slices of beef are deep fried then tossed with a sauce flavored with brown sugar, garlic and ginger. The crispy, tender bites of meat all coated with that delectable sauce are soooo good.

Mongolian Beef

Ingredients:

3 cups peanut or vegetable oil plus 1 tablespoon
Pinch of crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger root
6 tablespoons soy sauce
3/4 cup water
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 pounds beef flap steak or sirloin steak tips, sliced 1/4 inch thick on the diagonal
1/2 cup cornstarch
4 green onions, cut in 1-inch pieces
Steamed rice, to serve

Directions:

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir the green onion whites, red pepper, garlic and ginger until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the soy sauce, water, and brown sugar. Raise the heat to medium-high, and stir 6 minutes, until the sugar has dissolved and the sauce boils and slightly thickens. Remove sauce from the heat, and set aside.

2. Place the sliced beef and cornstarch into a bowl. Stir to coat the beef.

3. Heat the peanut oil in a large Dutch oven to 375℉ (190℃).

4. Add one third of beef slices to the hot oil and fry until the edges become crispy, about 4 minutes. Remove beef from the oil with a large slotted spoon, and allow to drain on paper towels to remove excess oil. Repeat with remaining beef in two batches.

5. Add the beef slices to the reserved soy sauce mixture. Stir to combine then add the green onions. Serve with rice.

Serves 4 to 6

Recipe from Cook’s Country Magazine

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