Chinese: beef with green beans (spicy version)

mm <[email hidden]> wrote in news:1178060833.574732.315260
@n76g2000hsh.googlegroups.com:

Quoted message said:

when I was placing an order (to be picked up) trying to avoid dish
where onion is the main ingredients (because he's alleregic to it), I
was suggested "Beef with Green beans". Later I was asked whether I
wanted to it spicy and I said yes. So there was this ish w/o onion
and with blean bean sauce in it.

I can make that dish easily except ..how would I marinade the meat so
that if'd be as soft as the one form this great Chinese restaurant?

This thread had a lot of suggestions, although I haven't tried them yet:
http://groups.google.com.au/group/rec.food.cooking/browse_frm/thread/c2814a
e987dfa00f

K

Make sure the marinade has the following ingredients in addition to whatever
you will be using as a flavoring. Acid, like vinegar or wine and 1/2
teaspoon baking soda. Cut thinly across the grain before marinading and do
it for 24 hours before quick cooking. I do all my oriental meats this way
and include these steps in addition to what the recipe calls for if these
ingredients are not included. I have chewing problems and the meat is
always eatable without teeth if required.

Dennis.

"mm" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

when I was placing an order (to be picked up) trying to avoid dish
where onion is the main ingredients (because he's alleregic to it), I
was suggested "Beef with Green beans". Later I was asked whether I
wanted to it spicy and I said yes. So there was this ish w/o onion
and with blean bean sauce in it.

I can make that dish easily except ..how would I marinade the meat so
that if'd be as soft as the one form this great Chinese restaurant?

No One said:

Make sure the marinade has the following ingredients in addition to whatever
you will be using as a flavoring. Acid, like vinegar or wine and 1/2
teaspoon baking soda.

The baking soda is the key. Optional is cornstarch.

Use 3/4 teaspoon for each lb of thinly sliced beef. I buy a whole
tri-tip and slice it all up at once, making 3-4 pouches I can
freeze for when I do Chinese (or Vietnamese) stuff.

You can also use the baking soda on pork. Not really recessary
with chicken (chicken gets kinda spongy with baking soda).

-sw

Steve Wertz said:

No One said:

Make sure the marinade has the following ingredients in addition to whatever
you will be using as a flavoring. Acid, like vinegar or wine and 1/2
teaspoon baking soda.

The baking soda is the key. Optional is cornstarch.

<snip>

What's the point of adding acid then neutralizing it with baking soda?

Kathleen said:

Steve Wertz said:

No One said:

Make sure the marinade has the following ingredients in addition to

whatever

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

you will be using as a flavoring. Acid, like vinegar or wine and 1/2
teaspoon baking soda.

The baking soda is the key. Optional is cornstarch.

<snip>

What's the point of adding acid then neutralizing it with baking soda?

Sqwertz prolly got that "tip" from the folks at his local Social Disease
Clinic, lol...

--
Best
Greg

Steve Wertz said:

On Wed, 2 May 2007 01:56:24 -0400, No One wrote:

Quoted message said:

The baking soda is the key. Optional is cornstarch.

Use 3/4 teaspoon for each lb of thinly sliced beef. I buy a whole
tri-tip and slice it all up at once, making 3-4 pouches I can
freeze for when I do Chinese (or Vietnamese) stuff.

Baking soda in a marinade? Is this added for the chewing
disadvantaged? Or for all thin-sliced beef or pork in stir fry?
Explicacion, bitte.

Gregory Morrow said:

Kathleen said:

Steve Wertz said:

On Wed, 2 May 2007 01:56:24 -0400, No One wrote:

>Make sure the marinade has the following ingredients in addition to

whatever

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

>you will be using as a flavoring. Acid, like vinegar or wine and 1/2
>teaspoon baking soda.

The baking soda is the key. Optional is cornstarch.

<snip>

What's the point of adding acid then neutralizing it with baking soda?

Sqwertz prolly got that "tip" from the folks at his local Social Disease
Clinic, lol...

I never said I added vinegar/acid. I personally use Shaoxing wine
and a little soy or oyster sauce to marinate red meat.

Although I suspect the baking soda still works when mixed with an
acid.

-sw

Steve Wertz said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

> The baking soda is the key. Optional is cornstarch.
<snip

Quoted message said:

I never said I added vinegar/acid. I personally use Shaoxing wine
and a little soy or oyster sauce to marinate red meat.

Although I suspect the baking soda still works when mixed with an
acid.

-sw

Still curious about the baking soda in a marinade. What do you
suspect
that it does? I'm hearing that it makes beef and pork so tender you
don't need teeth to eat it. Am I mis-hearing?

stark said:

Still curious about the baking soda in a marinade. What do you
suspect
that it does? I'm hearing that it makes beef and pork so tender you
don't need teeth to eat it. Am I mis-hearing?

No. Too much can make it rubbery, especially so with chicken. I
don't use any with chicken.

It's not very well known since the big corporations have spent
millions of dollars coming up with all these much more expensive
alternatives. When in reality, a $.44 box of baking soda will
tenderize 200lbs of meat.

I've never tried it on a whole steak, though. I usually buy
steaks that don't need tenderizing. But it works great for
thinly sliced meat and gives it that "Chinese texture" (along
with cornstarch for the silkiness).

-sw