Wonderfully browned bits of beef in a peppery, salty sweet sauce. That’s what this is. The sauce wilts the greens a bit and the whole thing just explodes delicious in your mouth. If you are a fan of the whole warm/cold composed salad thing this could become your new go to dish. Shaking beef doesn’t shake on the plate. That just sounds unappetizing when I write it down. It’s called shaking beef because of the way it’s cooked. Traditionally anyway. You’re supposed to shake the pan as the beef cooks. To make sure each little bit of meat gets evenly browned. Which is great in theory. But I don’t think that’s the best way to cook it.
Shaking beef needs to be browned
That browning that you get when you fry beef? That has a name. It’s called the Maillard reaction. And that reaction is a wonderful, wonderful thing. It’s food science. Chemistry. Amino acids and reducing sugars hit heat. And magic happens. Millions of new flavour compounds are created. You don’t need to understand it. But you do need to believe in it. And you need to make sure it happens in your pan. Which is why I don’t get a lot of recipes for shaking beef. I see marinate cubes of beef. Get them good and wet. Then dump it in a pan. When I try that I get steamed beef. Grey beef with maybe a little browning If I cook the beef to death. Not what I’m after at all. Wet, cubed beef is not good for Maillard. Think about overcrowding a pan when you are browning beef for stew. You get browning. Eventually. Once all the liquid that’s been released from the beef evaporates. Not great. But you can get by because it doesn’t matter how long you have the beef in the pot. It’s stew. The beef is going to get braised for hours. So you don’t have to worry about overcooking it in the pot. Thing is, it does matter for shaking beef.
Cook a steak – then make bo luc lac
When I want maximum Maillard I keep the beef in 8-10 oz size pieces. Steaks. And I salt at the last possible minute. Right before it goes into the pan. Salting at the last minute is important. Think dry brining. As soon as you salt water is drawn out onto the surface of the meat. That’s osmosis. More food science. The process reverses after a while. That’s how dry brining works. But you don’t want it in the pan while it’s wet. So salt at the last minute. You want as dry as you can get here. You won’t get browning on all sides like you would with cubes here. That’s true. My thinking is that two sides done right is better than six sides of mediocre. Plus you control how done the beef gets. Want medium rare? Stop at just before medium rare. Just remember an instant read thermometer is your friend here. Once your steak is done to your taste, cut it into bite size chunks. You want comfortable bites here. Not big chunks. Unless you really want to practice your Heimlich manoeuvre I guess.
Add the sauce to the cooked beef
Even if you do decide to cut up your beef before you cook it please save the sauce for the end. Follow the recipe with a steak (better) or cubes (if you must) to maximize browning. There’s another benefit to doing this way. When you cook beef in hot oil you get a fond. That brown stuff in the bottom of the pan? It’s gold. There’s all sorts of flavour there. Cook the beef. Add the garlic and sweat it a bit. And then deglaze with the sauce. Scrape up that gold. Don’t leave it behind. Get that flavour into your dish.
Choice of oyster sauce matters for shaking beef
I may not be popular for saying this. But I really prefer Thai oyster sauce. For any recipe that isn’t Chinese anyway. The flavour profile is different. I find it less salty. Less in your face. It doesn’t overpower. Just complements the dishes you use it in. I couldn’t stand oyster sauce for years. Didn’t even stock it in my fridge. Until I discovered Thai oyster sauce. Now I always have it on hand.
Bo luc lac meets food science
This is shaking beef with a little food science thrown in. It’s a different approach for sure. Not your mom’s bo luc lac. It’s how I like it though. I’m always after big, bold flavours. Try it. If you like it, let your mom know.
