Chinese Spicy Orange Beef Stir Fry – 4sp

Some nights just call for a quick and easy tea which can be whacked together in less than half an hour. This dish is definitely one of those. The stir fry sauce itself is very simple but the finished result is so, so tasty, it really is worth giving a go.

If you don’t like things too spicy, just add the one chilli and leave out the chilli oil. If you like a nice heat, make as below and when you add the chilli oil, make sure you get some of the crushed chillies from the bottom of the jar as they add a lovely warmth. I use Chiu Chow chilli oil which you can get in most supermarkets now but you can also find it in Chinese supermarkets and on Amazon or Ebay. It tastes amazing and is great added to loads of things to make them a bit more exciting – from scrambled eggs to dumplings.

For this dish I used lean beef frying steak but you could also use lean rump steak if you prefer. The dish would also work nicely with chicken (this would reduce the points to 2sp per serving) just make sure you cook the chicken through before removing from the pan.

This is a dish packed with veg and so I just served it as below however I served my hubbies with 60g of plain boiled rice. Egg fried rice or noodles would also work well but remember to add the extra points.

Chinese Spicy Orange Beef Stir Fry

Ingredients

Serves 4 = 4sp per serving (Flex)

For the stir fry sauce

2 large oranges

3 tsp Shaoxing rice wine

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

2 tsp cornflour

For the stir fry

600g lean raw stir fry beef, cubed

1 red onion, peeled and sliced

1 white onion, peeled and sliced

2 peppers, deseeded and sliced

2 chillies, finely sliced (or 1 chilli if you don’t like things too hot)

3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped (or 2 tsp of lazy garlic)

Thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled and finely minced (or 2 tsp of lazy ginger)

Pack of mange tout, halved

Pack of baby corn, halved

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

1 tsp chilli oil (I use Chow chilli oil which I get from the Chinese supermarket)

Method

Begin by using a potato peeler to peel the skin of one of the oranges (try to avoid the white pith closest to the flesh as this is very bitter). Slice the peel into small matchsticks and set to one side. Then slice both oranges in half and squeeze out the juice. You should end up with around 6-8 tbsp of orange juice. Take a bowl and add the orange juice to it with the rest of the sauce ingredients. Stir to ensure the cornflour is dissolved into the liquid. Pop the sauce to one side.

Next, take a large frying pan or wok, spray with 1kal and add the frying steak. Season with salt and pepper and fry for 5-6 minutes until browned (or cooked to your liking). Remove the beef from the pan and pop on a plate to one side.

To the same pan, spray again with 1kal and then add the onions, peppers and chilli. Stir fry for 5-6 minutes until the onion starts to soften (add a little water if the pan gets a bit dry) and then add the orange peel, garlic, ginger, mange tout and baby corn.  Once all of the veg is cooked to your liking (I like my mange tout and baby corn with a bit of a bite), add the beef back to the pan with the sauce, 1 tbsp dark soy sauce and the chilli oil (if you are having). Toss everything together and simmer for a few more minutes to heat the sauce through. Taste and season further if required.

Plate up and enjoy!