Black Pepper Beef

Method

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1. Toss the sliced beef with the soy sauce, cornflour, Shaoxing wine and bicarbonate of soda and leave 10 minutes while you prepare everything else.

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2. Whisk all the sauce ingredients together in a jug and set it by the hob.

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3. Crack the peppercorns coarsely in a mortar or under the base of a heavy pan.

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4. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a wok or large frying pan over the highest heat until smoking. Add the beef in a single layer and leave 60 seconds before stirring, then cook 60 seconds more until just browned. Tip onto a plate — it will not be cooked through.

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5. Add the remaining oil, then the onion and peppers, and stir-fry 2 minutes over high heat until blistered at the edges but still crunchy.

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6. Add the garlic, ginger and cracked pepper and stir for 30 seconds, until the pepper smells sharp and fragrant.

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7. Give the sauce a stir and pour it in. It will thicken within 45 seconds.

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8. Return the beef and any juices, add the spring onions, and toss for 30 seconds to coat and finish cooking.

   Mark done Start 30 sec timer

Chef’s Tips

• Everything chopped and the sauce mixed before the pan goes on. The whole cook is under six minutes.
• A full tablespoon of pepper. It sounds like a lot and it is the name of the dish.
• Highest heat you have, and do not crowd the pan.

Common Substitutions & Variations

• Out of spring onions? A small regular onion, finely sliced, or a few chives stirred in at the end both cover the job.
• A quarter-teaspoon of ground ginger per tablespoon of fresh is the standard ratio if you are working from the spice rack rather than a fresh root.
• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the usual stand-in when you are out of fresh garlic — it will not caramelise the same way, but it carries the flavour.

Pairing Suggestions

• Steamed jasmine rice
• Stir-fried greens
• A cold lager

Storage & Reheating

Refrigerated for 3 days. Reheat fast in a hot pan; slow reheating toughens the beef.

Common questions

Nutritional Highlights

Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list. Treat these as an estimate — brands and cuts vary.