Stir-fry beef with black bean sauce is my favorite food ordered in Chinese restaurants. 

Since my favorite restaurant is no longer serving this dish recently, I decided to dig deeper into how to prepare it at home.

I am delighted it is pretty easy to prepare if I use a store-bought black bean sauce. What’s more, it is such a delicious, quick, and easy recipe that I can make it within 30 minutes.

After enjoying the delicious beef stir-fry with black bean sauce today, I’ve decided to jot down the steps and share this recipe with you.

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1. Preparation for the beef stir-fry with black bean sauce

a. Fermented black bean sauce (douchi, 豆豉)

The star of this recipe is the fermented black bean sauce.

Black bean sauce dishes are typical in Cantonese cooking, likely because the sauce is salty with high umami, making adding other seasonings nearly unnecessary. Our recipes for chicken, pork ribs, and steamed fish prepared with black bean sauce are equally popular among our readers. The sauce is considered a multi-purpose sauce perfectly paired with any ingredients.

There are two ways you can include the fermented black beans in the recipe.

• The first method is to purchase some fermented black beans from the Chinese grocery store, then coarsely chop them before use.
• The second method uses store-bought fermented black bean sauce (also labeled as black bean paste). Store-bought black bean paste contains additional salt. Therefore, you may need to adjust the saltiness accordingly. I’m using the Lee Kum Kee brand of black bean sauce.

Note: The black bean for this recipe is not the raw black soybeans. Instead, it is the fermented version of the beans. If you need clarification, please get help from the storekeeper of the Chinese grocery store to get the correct item. Please ensure you do not use raw black beans, as they are irrelevant to this dish.

b. Use a suitable cut of beef

The best cut of beef for stir-frying is the tenderloin. However, cheaper cuts such as topside, chucks, or rump steak are also suitable.

I added a teaspoon of baking soda to marinate the less expensive cut of beef as it tenderizes the meat.  It is a standard ingredient for the Chinese chef to marinate the beef and is harmless, as in most baking items. However, I use not more than a teaspoon for each pound of meat, as too much baking soda can leave a slightly bitter taste.

Cutting the beef across the grain into thin slices will help make the meat more tender. My favorite method is to keep the chunk of beef in the freezer until half froze. I can slice the beef into very thin slices if the beef is firm.

c. Marinate the beef

There is no need to use a complicated marinade for the beef. It will absorb the flavor from the sauce quickly while cooking as it is cut into thin slices. So I marinate the beef with light soy sauce, salt, baking powder, and cornstarch for about 15 minutes.

d. Prepare other ingredients for the beef stir-fry

Prepare other ingredients for this recipe while marinating the beef.

• I coarsely chopped some fresh ginger and a few cloves of garlic. You can make ginger juice if you do not like to bite on the ginger.
• Cut two stalks of spring onion into short sections, about 1 inch in length.
• Cut the green bell pepper into one-inch pieces. I also mix with some red bell pepper to improve the color of the dish.
• Slice one medium size onion into thin strips or wedges.
• Constitute a cornstarch slurry by combining one teaspoon of cornstarch with two tablespoons of water. Please use water at room temperature, not boiling water. Boiling water will gel up the cornstarch instantly, which makes it lumpy.

e. The seasoning ingredients for stir-frying

The ingredients for the stir-fry sauce are light soy sauce, oyster sauce, ground black pepper, and water. The amount should be just enough as the beef marinated with salt. Furthermore, the black bean sauce is salty.

We prepare most of the stir-fry sauces in advance in the restaurant to avoid accidentally omitting any components of the stir-fry sauce. It is a good practice even when we cook at home. All I need is to put all the ingredients in a small bowl and mix them with water.

Note:

• An optional ingredient is dark soy sauce which darkens the color of the sauce. 
• Traditional Chinese cooking usually uses white pepper, but I find that the flavor of black pepper is better.

2. How to stir-fry the beef and the vegetables

It is better to prepare everything in advance since stir-fry is quick.

1. Add three tablespoons of oil to the wok. You can use a large frying pan or large skillet if you do not possess a wok. The best way is to use a high-power stove that can generate high heat. If not, crank up the heat of your regular stove before stir-frying.
2. Heat the vegetable oil to medium-high heat, then add the marinated beef and spread it out into a single layer. Use any cooking oil with a high smoking point to stir-fry, as the heat is quite intense.
3. Let the beef sear for half a minute, then flip over to sear the other side until slightly brown.
4. Continue to stir-fry the beef until about 80% cooked. Then remove the beef from the wok with a strainer, and leave excess oil in the wok.
5. Saute the chopped garlic and ginger with the remaining oil in the wok. Please add more oil if required. Saute the garlic and ginger over low to medium heat since garlic can burn quickly.
6. Add the black bean sauce and the stir-fry sauce, then put all the vegetables into the wok. Turn up the heat to stir-fry the vegetable until crisp-tender.  You can add a splash of water if it is too dry. 
7. Return the beef to the wok and thoroughly combine it with the other ingredients.
8. Add the cornstarch slurry to thicken the gravy.
9. Lastly, add the spring onion.
10. Before you remove the beef from the wok, add a teaspoon of sesame oil and a tablespoon of Shaoxing wine to elevate the flavor.
11. Have a few quick stirs over high heat, and dish out.

This black bean sauce recipe has strong umami, ideal for pairing with white rice.

Variations:

My recipe is the basic version of stir-fried beef with black bean sauce. It is also the most common version served in Chinese restaurants. You can add other vegetables to the dish, for example, snow peas and carrots or any vegetables you prefer.

Yield: 3 servings

Beef with Black Bean Sauce

Print

You can make the beef and black sauce stir-fry within thirty minutes. The fermented black beans are flavorful and best served with white rice.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

Ingredient A

• 350g beef
• 2 tsp light soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cornstarch

Ingredients B

• 2 tsp minced ginger
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 green bell pepper
• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1 medium-sized onion
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp rice wine
• 1 tsp of cornstarch (plus 1 tbsp of water to make a slurry)

Ingredients C

• 1.5 tbsp black bean sauce
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 3 tbsp water

Instructions

Preparation

1. Cut the beef across the grain into thin slices.
2. Marinate the beef with Ingredient A for 15 minutes.
3. Cut the spring onion into short sections, about 1 inch in length.
4. Cut the green bell pepper into one-inch pieces. 
5. Slice one medium size onion into wedges.
6. Mix Ingredients C (except the black bean) to become the stir-fry sauce.

Cooking

1. Heat the vegetable oil to medium-high heat, then add the marinated beef and spread it out into a single layer. 
2. Let the beef sear for half a minute, then flip over to sear the other side until slightly brown.
3. Continue to stir-fry the beef until about 80% cooked. Then remove the beef from the wok with a strainer, and leave excess oil in the wok.
4. Saute the chopped garlic and ginger with the remaining oil in the wok. 
5. Add the black bean sauce and the stir-fry sauce to the wok, then put all the vegetables into the wok. Turn up the heat to stir-fry the vegetable until crisp-tender.  You can add a splash of water if it is too dry. 
6. Return the beef to the wok.
7. Add the cornstarch slurry to thicken the gravy.
8. Add the spring onion, a teaspoon of sesame oil, and a tablespoon of Shaoxing wine. Dish out.

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  Cuisinart CTG-00-3MS Set of 3 Fine Mesh Stainless Steel Strainers
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  Lee Kum Kee Black Bean Garlic Sauce - 8 oz.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

3

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 498Total Fat: 36gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 24gCholesterol: 102mgSodium: 1419mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 1gSugar: 3gProtein: 32g

This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix on 04/01/2023