Orange Beef

Orange beef is a variation of orange chicken, a dish originated from Hunan province and very popular in Chinese-American cuisine. In Chinese, the food is known as “old peel beef/chicken”, which refers to dried orange or tangerine peel, that also often used in Chinese medicine. Western recipes prefer to use fresh orange peel, or even no peel at all and substitute it with orange concentrate.

This dish consists of crispy strips of beef coated with a delicious orange sauce. Here is the orange beef recipe, and you can substitute the beef with boneless chicken if you like:

Ingredients:

1/2 lb Top round steak, sliced into thin strips
2 tablespoons Sherry
2 tablespoons Cornstarch
2 Egg whites
6 tablespoons Peanut oil
5 Dried red chile peppers, broken into pieces
8 Thin slices of orange rind (orange part only) or more
Fresh ground black pepper to taste
Broccoli florets (bleached), for garnish
Fresh orange slices, for garnish

Sauce:
1 1/2 cups Beef stock
2 tablespoons Light soy sauce
1 teaspoon Sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons Cornstarch
1 teaspoon Red wine vinegar

Orange Beef (Illustration only, results may vary).

Directions:

• Mix the sherry, cornstarch, and egg whites and stir it until the mixture is foamy. Add the beef and toss to coat the pieces well. Set aside and let it sit for 20-30 minutes. Mix the sauce in a bowl and set aside.
• Heat 4 tablespoons of peanut oil in wok or deep-fryer. Fry the beef (in batches, don’t crowd) quickly, just until crispy and browned. Drain on paper towels.
• Add the remaining peanut oil to wok. When it’s hot enough, add orange rind slices and red peppers. Stir−fry until orange rind begins to darken and the oil smells fragrant. Add remaining ingredients and sauce, stir until bubbly (add more beef stock if it’s too thick). Add fried beef and cook to coat with sauce.
• Garnish with broccoli and orange slices. Serve the orange beef with steamed white rice.

Other Delicious Chinese Recipes

• Beef and Broccoli
• Hoisin Beef and Scallion Rolls
• Hunan Beef