{"id":8236,"date":"2018-02-18T06:00:57","date_gmt":"2018-02-18T11:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.savorytooth.com\/?page_id=8236"},"modified":"2021-04-18T12:12:55","modified_gmt":"2021-04-18T19:12:55","slug":"tender-stir-fry-beef","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.savorytooth.com\/tender-stir-fry-beef\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Cook Tender Stir Fry Beef"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
There’s nothing worse than eating tough strips of stir fry beef. It makes you wonder how Chinese restaurants are able to make stir fry dishes with such supple and velvety beef strips.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Below I’ve collected my top tips for cooking restaurant-style beef strips that come out perfectly tender and juicy. Follow these steps to select and prepare your beef for optimal cooking that results in juicy meat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Choose a cut of steak such as flank steak or better. The more premium the cut, the more tender the meat. I usually opt for flank steak because it strikes a good balance between budget friendliness and tenderness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some supermarkets will have pre-cut beef strips, often labeled as “beef for stir fry” or similar verbiage. These will also work well, but the downside is that they’re usually sliced too thick (see below) and it’ll be difficult to slice them thinner once cut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inspect the steak and look for long muscle fibers. Notice how they are aligned with the steak. You should slice perpendicular to those lines, so that you are cutting through the fibers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By slicing through the fibers, you are slicing “against the grain,” which results in less work for your teeth and makes the beef taste more tender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Make thin cuts about 1\/4 inch or thinner. Thin strips of beef are best because they won’t take long to cook. The thinner the beef, the more tender it will taste and the less chewy it will be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thicker strips require longer cooking times, which usually means the outside is overcooked by the time the inside is cooked. It’s easier to accidentally overcook a thicker strip of beef than a thinner one. An overcooked thick strip will also be tougher than an overcooked thin strip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n