Gluten-Free Szechuan Beef -Better Than Takeout

Szechuan Beef is a dish that is often considered very spicy and comes in many different forms. Today I will share a Gluten-Free Szechuan Beef recipe that is guaranteed to please anyone and everyone. Okay, maybe not everyone. It is the internet, after all. But I digress. Are you ready to make homemade Szechuan Beef that is better than take-out? Good! Let's get to it.

What is Szechuan?

In most Chinese Restaurants, the name Szechuan denotes a spicy dish laced with chilli peppers. And in truth, the Szechuan province of China is known for its spicy food. However, up until chilli peppers were introduced to the area in the 15th or 16th century, and even to this day, much of the spiciness in Szechuan food comes not from chillies but the Szechuan peppercorn.

Despite the name, Szechuan peppercorns aren't actually pepper. They aren't related to pepper or chillies at all. They do, however, look similar to peppercorns and produce a warming of the mouth. The main difference in flavour between a Szechuan peppercorn, and either regular pepper or chilli pepper, can not be overstated. Where peppercorns and chillis burn or even sting the mouth, Szechuan peppercorns warm, tingle and slightly numb the mouth in an enjoyable way. You can find Szechuan peppercorns in most bulk food stores or specialty Asian or Chinese groceries in the spice aisles. To the best of my knowledge, there is no equal substitute for Szechuan peppercorns. Szechuan peppercorns are one of the spices in the spice blend, Chinese Five Spice.

The Beef

For my Szechuan beef recipe, I used about half a pound (224g) of sirloin tip. You can use just about any cut of beef you want for this. The meat is cut so thin and marinated that it will be tender no matter what. But keep in mind that you must cut across the grain.

The grain of the meat is the direction in which the muscle fibers grow, similar to the grain of a piece of wood. This will change from muscle to muscle. The idea is that you want to shorten those muscle fibers by cutting across them rather than with them. This makes the meat more tender and easier to chew. With the sirloin that I used, I had to cut it into three separate pieces because the grain was going in three separate directions. Then I cut those three pieces across the grain. This extra step makes a world of difference to the finished product. Cut the beef no more than 5 mm thick.

Marinating The Beef

The beef for our Szechuan beef needs to be marinated for at least an hour. Two hours is better. The marinade for the beef is a teaspoon each of chopped ginger and garlic. Two tablespoons of tamari, a quarter teaspoon of fresh cracked black pepper, one egg white, and one tablespoon of cornstarch. Mix all of this up in a bowl with the sliced beef, cover it with plastic, and put it in the fridge for an hour or two.

Vegetables

Szechuan Beef isn't just beef. That would be a little boring. So, we need a few vegetables. Take the seeds and white ribs out of a red bell pepper and slice half of it as thin as you can. Save the other half to use for something else. Peel and thinly slice an onion, about the size of a small orange. Wash well, and thinly slice two green onions. And, chop as finely as you can about a tablespoon each of garlic and ginger.

The Sauce

The Szechuan Beef also needs a sauce. To make the sauce combine one tablespoon of sugar with two tablespoons of tamari, one tablespoon rice vinegar, one teaspoon Sambal Oelek (can be found at most grocery stores or can be substituted with Sriracha), two tablespoons of water, and a pinch of salt. Stir the sauce together and set aside until your ready for it.

Other Flavours

It's almost time to start cooking the Szechuan Beef, but we need our two key ingredients before we get going on that. They are Szechuan peppercorns and dried red chilli. If you can't find Szechuan peppercorns, use a teaspoon of Chinese five-spice. It will slightly change the flavour of the dish, but not in a bad way. Use one tablespoon of Szechuan peppercorns and grind them in a spice grinder or a mortar and pestles. This should give you about a teaspoon of ground Szechuan pepper. Mix the ground Szechuan peppercorns with a teaspoon of dried red chilli flakes.

Cooking The Szechuan Beef

Before we get cooking, let's talk about what I'm cooking with. I opted to use a large non-stick pan rather than a work for this for two reasons. The first reason is that most people probably have a large non-stick pan, where they don't have a wok. Second of all, because of the egg white and cornstarch coating on the meat, it tends to stick to a wok's surface unless it is non-stick. I thought that using the non-stick pan would be better for the demonstration and for cooking this dish. Of course, if you prefer to use a wok, go for it.

Cooking The Beef

The way to prepare this so that the beef remains tender and doesn't become overcooked is to cook in stages. Stage one is to cook the beef. To do that, heat a pan or wok over medium-high heat. My stove goes to nine. I had the dial set to eight. Let the pan heat thoroughly. When you splash a little water on it, it should sizzle and roll away. Add one tablespoon of cooking oil to the pan (ensure there is no water in the pan before adding the oil). I used canola oil, but any oil will do. Spread the oil around the pan and add the beef. Let the beef sit for at least one minute before stirring or tossing it. Move it around and let it sit for another minute. Cook the beef only until it is golden brown, then take it out of the pan. It should only take three to four minutes. Don't worry about cooking the beef all the way through. Just get a little colour on it.

Building The Flavour

Put the pan back on the heat, and add in another tablespoon of oil along with the ginger and garlic. Cook the ginger and garlic for about a minute, then add in the ground Szechuan peppercorns and chilli. Cook for forty-five seconds to a minute.

Vegetables

After the Szechuan pepper and chilli have been in the pan for about a minute, add all of the vegetables. Normally, I would suggest doing this in stages (if you are making a double batch of the recipe, add the onions and green onions first, cook for three minutes, then add in the red peppers) to maintain the heat of the pan. However, because the amount of vegetables we are using does not cover the pan's whole surface, it won't cool down too much. We actually want the pan's temperature to drop slightly so the garlic, ginger, pepper, and chilli don't burn.

Throughout this whole cooking process, I do not turn the temperature down. You must not either. If you feel like your pan is getting too hot or your food is burning, keep stirring the food, lift the pan off the heat for thirty seconds, and then put it back down. The pan needs to retain the majority of its heat. If the pan cools down too much, moisture coming off the vegetables will hit the surface and pool rather than evaporate. If this happens, our stir-fry will become a stir-boil, which no one wants.

Adding The Beef Back In and The Sauce

The final step to making this Szechuan Beef is to add the partially cooked beef back into the pan, let it heat back up for a minute or so, then add in the sauce. The cornstarch on the beef will help to thicken the sauce, so there is no need for an additional thickener. Continue to cook for about two minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove the Szechuan Beef from the pan to a serving dish, garnish with green onion, and serve with rice.

Conclusion

This Szechuan Beef recipe may be slightly different from what you are used to, but it is excellent and similar to what you will find in higher-end Chinese restaurants. It isn't nearly as spicy (hot) as you think it would be. The Szechuan peppercorns warm you up, slightly numb your mouth, and give you a sense of heat without burning your face off. In my opinion, this is a must-make.

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