This braised beef with bamboo shoots is a mildly spicy, soul-warming, homestyle dish that pairs perfectly with steamed rice, noodles or shaobing (Chinese sesame flatbread). The frying of the bamboo shoots gives them a special chewy, yet tender texture.
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Shaanxi-Style Braised Beef Shank with Bamboo Shoots and Carrots
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Total Time: 3.5 hours
- Yield: Serves 4 1x
Ingredients
2½ lb (1.3 kg) Beef Centre Cut Shank, 1½-inch (4 cm) pieces
15 dried facing heaven chili peppers (chao tian jiao) or another medium-hot dried pepper
4 EACH dried licorice root slices and whole star anise
1 tsp (5 mL) whole Sichuan peppercorns
2-inch (5 cm) piece gingerroot, thinly sliced
⅓ cup (75 mL) light soy sauce (approx)
2 tbsp (30 mL) dark soy sauce
3 tbsp (45 mL) Shaoxing wine
4 large green onions, Welsh onions or small leeks (see Note*), trimmed
1 tbsp (15 mL) granulated sugar
1 tsp (5 mL) salt (approx)
2 cans (EACH 19 oz/540 g) bamboo shoot tips in water, drained
1 lb (500 g) carrots
Canola or sunflower oil
¼ tsp (1 mL) ground white pepper
To Serve (optional)
Green onions, thinly sliced
Chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Score around the perimeter of each shank 5 or 6 times with a sharp knife, just barely cutting into the meat (this prevents the meat from curling). Place the beef shank in a large pot and add water to cover by at least 3 inches (8 cm). Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat and boil for 5 minutes, skimming off any scum that rises to the top. Drain and rinse the shanks well under cold, running water. Clean the pot.
- Trim the shank meat from the bone and cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) cubes. Return meat and bones to the pot.
- Wearing protective gloves, trim the tops off the chilis with scissors and remove the seeds by rolling the chili between your thumb and forefinger and shaking out the seeds. Discard seeds.
- Enclose chili peppers, licorice root, star anise, Sichuan peppercorns and gingerroot in a cheesecloth bundle, a tea filter bag or spice infuser. Add to the pot along with the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, wine, large green onions, sugar and salt; add enough water to cover the beef. Bring to a boil over high heat and skim off any scum that rises to the top. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 hours, maintaining the liquid level by adding more water as needed and skimming the surface occasionally.
- Meanwhile cut the bamboo shoot tips on a diagonal into 1/2-inch (1 cm) thick slices; pat dry well with paper towel. Cut the carrots on a diagonal into 1-inch (2.5 cm) thick slices.
- Set a large sieve or colander over a bowl and a wire skimmer or slotted spoon by the stovetop. Heat ¼-inch (0.5 cm) of oil over medium high heat in a heavy skillet. Add bamboo shoot slices, in batches without too much overlapping and fry, stirring and turning occasionally, for about 5 to 6 minutes or until the shoots are golden brown. Transfer to the sieve with a wire skimmer or slotted spoon. Repeat with the remaining bamboo shoots, adding more oil to the pan between batches, as necessary. Add the carrots to the pan and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes, stirring and turning frequently, until the carrots just start turning golden. Transfer to the sieve.
- When the beef has cooked for 2 hours, add the bamboo shoots and carrots. Boil gently, uncovered, for about 30 minutes or until the beef and carrots are tender and the liquid has reduced. Remove from heat.
- Remove the spice bag, large green onions and bones; remove any meat from the bones and return it to the pot (discard spices, large green onions and bones). Stir in white pepper. Season to taste with salt and soy sauce, if needed. Ladle into bowls and serve sprinkled with green onions and/or cilantro, as desired.
Notes
*For the braise, the “large green onions”, also called large scallions, look similar to a regular green onion or a small leek but are thicker and have a larger portion of white to green; Welsh onions are also called bunching onions or Japanese onions and have hollow leaves and a small white portion. Both are available at Asian grocery stores; small leeks can be used for the braise, as well. For the garnish, use regular green onions.
