Often Asian cuisines, such as Thai versus Chinese, have many of the same ingredients like ginger or soy sauce. Also, there are some ingredients that set them apart. Like tamarind (it’s the secret ingredient of Pad Thai) or Thai long chiles.
In this recipe I have used a number of typical Thai ingredients such as tamarind, lime, soy sauce, red chili paste, ginger, palm sugar – even the noodles are Pad Thai. Sometimes it’s hard to find the exact ingredients such as birds eye chiles but there are substitutes you can use such as hatch or arbol. Or maybe you just want to use peppers you can eat and not use just for flavor.
I’ve used the velveting technique where I have coated the beef with a cornstarch/sherry (or rice wine) slurry to keep the meat supple as it cooks on high heat in my wok. I’m not sure if this is done often in Thai cooking. The meat was so tender and with the sauce and starch from the creamy noodles and pasta water the dish was absolutely delicious.
Thai Beef With Onions, Peppers and Pad Thai Noodles
- 12-16 oz. Pad Thai rice noodles or linguine
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 3 tbsp. dry sherry or rice wine
- 2 tbsp. cornstarch
- 2 tbsp. palm sugar, packed or you can substitute light brown sugar
- 1 tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
- 1 tsp. roasted red chili paste or a few dashes red chili oil
- 2-3 large cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 lime or use 1 tbsp. tamarind paste (lime is milder and results in a lighter colored sauce)
- 1 lb. flank steak (freeze for 1 hour for easier slicing), sliced very thin against the grain
- 2 tbsp. palm or canola oil (did you know Thai cuisine rarely uses peanut oil?)
- 1 onion, sliced
- I used jalapeno, hot green Anaheim and sweet red Italian frying peppers, cut into strips/or pieces – use Thai long chiles or birds eye chiles for more of an authentic dish
- garnish with Thai basil or lemon basil (I only had regular basil)
Cook the noodles according to the package directions; drain and save at least 1 cup of the pasta water.
Mix the soy sauce, sherry, cornstarch, brown sugar, ginger, chili paste or oil, garlic and the juice of half of the lime. Pour a third of the marinade into a bowl with the sliced beef and toss to coat; marinate for a few hours. Reserve the rest of the marinade to use in the sauce.
Heat 1 tbsp. of the oil in a wok or large skillet. When hot, throw in the onions and cook for a few minutes. Add the peppers and stir-fry for a minute tossing until the peppers are slightly cooked. Remove the veggies to a bowl.
Add the remaining tbsp. of oil to your wok. Add the meat and stir-fry for a minute or so, turning once. Then add the onions and peppers back into the skillet and reduce the heat. Pour in the remaining marinade and simmer for a few minutes, until slightly thickened.
Add half of the noodles to the stir-fry. Toss and add more noodles as desired. Stir in some of the pasta water if needed to thin the sauce.
Garnish with Thai basil and some fresh lime juice (optional).
Recipe from cookingwithauntjuju.com
Linking to Fiesta Friday #186.
Reblogged this on mamabatesmotel.
Thanks very much!
You’re welcome…
Yummy, I will only eat Asian food if I prepare it myself this is going in the recipe file.
Me too Suzanne – restaurants always add way too much salt! This is a great recipe and I hope you can make it some time 🙂
Such a flavorful dish. I love this way of preparing the meat with the marinade. It gives such a wonderful taste and texture. I need to get some flank steak soon! 🙂
Thanks Ronit – it turned out perfect and so tasty. The noodles were creamy and a nice change from rice. I love this kind of meal 🙂
The dish looks amazing Aunt Juju. Lots of lovely flavours.I guess I can skip the wine though. Hope it doesn’t make much difference to the dish.
Ana😊
Thanks Ana – You could substitute apple cider vinegar or maybe even chicken broth. Of course you could leave it out but I am not sure how it would taste 🙂
Thank you so much for the options. I will try the vinegar👍🏻😊
Yum!! Aunt Juju you just made me hungry!
Thanks Debbie – Asian food always makes me hungry!
Note to myself: DO NOT GO THROUGH THE READER around lunch time. My tummy is so hungry right now, I can only imagine what these wonderful bold flavors would bring. Lovely!
LOL – that’s funny as I sometimes do the same thing. Too many good recipes all at once! Thanks Loretta – the recipe is a keeper but like all Asian dishes you can make it to your taste 🙂
Wonderful. I get a lot of the cuisines mixed up, because I don’t make a lot of any of them, but I’m with you. I do not eat at Chinese restaurants. Unless I’m in Chinatown!
Thanks – I do too and I make a lot of Asian recipes. I’m always interested in the history of food in different cuisines – I guess that’s the teacher/librarian in me 🙂
There’s just something so special about meat that’s been cooked with cornstarch…the texture is just so dreamy! Happy Fiesta Friday! – Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck – Colleen
Yes, the sauce was delicious, creamy, flavorful and dreamy 🙂
Wow! This looks absolutely delicious! I may eat this with a cup of rice. 😀 Thanks for sharing, Aunt Juju!
Thanks – it would be delicious with rice. The noodles were a nice change and really soaked up the sauce and added a contrast with the crispy veggies and tender beef.
This looks and sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks – it’s a great dish with lots of flavor 🙂
That looks better than any Asian restaurant! I just love stir-fry noodles. It’s comfort food for me.
Thank you and I do agree! It’s much better to cook any Asian cuisine at home 🙂
I’m really getting to where I crave Asian dishes and this one sounds so good. I like noodles versus rice most of the time too.
Thanks Julie – I love this kind of recipe. My problem is I eat too much as the whole dish was soooo goooood 🙂