Red-Braised Beef (Hong Shao Niu Rou)

Steps

1. 1

   Step 1

   

   Rinse all ingredients and set aside. Choose beef shank (niu nan) with streaks of fat marbled through the lean for the best texture. Avoid imported beef shank, which tends to be loose, tough and dry from long storage. If you end up with very lean, tough meat or shank muscle that will not tenderize, save it for a cold-dressed beef dish and buy a well-marbled cut of beef shank or beef belly for this recipe instead.

   ✅ Done when: All ingredients are rinsed and laid out ready to use.

2. 2

   Step 2

   

   Cut the beef into 3x3 or 4x4 cm cubes.

   ✅ Done when: The beef is cut into even 3-4 cm cubes.

3. 3

   Step 330 min

   Off heat
   

   Soak the beef cubes in cold water for 30 minutes to draw out any gaminess and blood.

   ✅ Done when: After 30 minutes, the water has turned pinkish from the released blood.

4. 4

   Step 4

   

   While the beef soaks, wash, cut and break up all the aromatics and seasonings.

   ✅ Done when: All aromatics and seasonings are prepped and within reach.

5. 5

   Step 5

   

   You will see the blood has soaked out. Discard the soaking water and rinse the beef thoroughly two more times, then drain and set aside.

   ✅ Done when: The rinse water runs clear and the beef is well drained.

6. 6

   Step 6

   Blanching (chao shui) ↗
   

   Fill a large clay pot (or heavy pot) half full with cold water. Add half of the cooking wine (150 ml) and half of the ginger slices. Do not turn on the heat yet.

   ✅ Done when: The pot holds the beef's blanching liquid, cold, with wine and ginger added.

7. 7

   Step 7

   High heatBlanching (chao shui) ↗
   

   Add the beef, then bring to a boil over high heat. Starting from cold water matters: hot water would seize the beef immediately, trapping the blood inside and hurting the texture.

   ✅ Done when: The water comes to a rolling boil and gray blood-scum foam rises to the surface.

8. 8

   Step 8

   Low heatSugar caramelizing (chao tang se) ↗
   

   While the beef boils, make the caramelized sugar oil. Add oil to a wok without heating it first, add the rock sugar, break it into small pieces with a spoon or spatula, then stir-fry over low heat until the rock sugar melts into a liquid. Do not use high heat or it will scorch easily and turn the finished dish bitter. Beginners should just melt the sugar fully; the deep caramel color shown in the original photos takes practice, since it can burn in an instant at that stage.

   ✅ Done when: The rock sugar has fully melted into a smooth liquid sugar-oil.

9. 9

   Step 9

   Blanching (chao shui) ↗
   

   Back to the beef: once the blood-scum foam floats up, skim it off little by little with a ladle.

   ✅ Done when: The surface of the boiling water is free of foam.

10. 10

    Step 10

    Blanching (chao shui) ↗
    

    Keep skimming until bringing the water back to a boil produces almost no foam. Lift the beef out and drain it. Do not discard the blanching liquid — it is not gamey, since the blood was soaked and rinsed out beforehand, and it will be used for braising later.

    ✅ Done when: The beef is lifted out and drained, with the blanching liquid reserved.

11. 11

    Step 113 min

    High heatStir-frying ↗
    

    Add the drained beef to the caramelized sugar oil in the wok. Once it is all in, turn to high heat and stir-fry for about 3 minutes.

    ✅ Done when: After about 3 minutes the beef is evenly coated and sizzling in the sugar-oil.

12. 12

    Step 122 min

    Medium-high heatStir-frying ↗
    

    Add all the remaining seasonings except the light soy sauce and braising soy sauce, and stir-fry together for 2 minutes. Then pour in the light soy sauce and braising soy sauce. Important: do not add any extra salt — the soybean chili bean paste and the soy sauces provide plenty of saltiness on their own. If you are worried about saltiness or heat, start with less chili bean paste, taste, and adjust. Regular soybean paste can replace the chili bean paste for those who cannot eat spicy food, starting with a smaller amount.

    ✅ Done when: After 2 minutes the aromatics are fragrant and evenly mixed with the beef, then the soy sauces are stirred in.

13. 13

    Step 135 min

    High heatStir-frying ↗
    

    Pour the remaining cooking wine in batches down the side of the wok and stir-fry until it is nearly cooked off. Then ladle some of the reserved blanching liquid from the clay pot into the wok and boil over high heat for 5 minutes. Be sure the wine is fully cooked off before adding the liquid, or the dish may turn sour.

    ✅ Done when: The wine smell has cooked off and, after 5 minutes at a high boil, the beef is simmering in a glossy sauce.

14. 14

    Step 14120 min

    Low heatSimmering (dun) ↗
    

    Transfer everything back into the clay pot, cover, and simmer gently over low heat for 2 hours. (In an electric pressure cooker, about 40 minutes at pressure; a stovetop pressure cooker needs only about 15 minutes.)

    ✅ Done when: After 2 hours of gentle simmering, the beef is tender and easily pierced.

15. 15

    Step 15

    Simmering (dun) ↗
    

    Taste a piece to check whether it is soft and tender enough. If not, keep simmering for another 30 minutes to 1 hour as needed, then turn off the heat when the texture is right.

    ✅ Done when: A tasted piece of beef is soft enough to chew easily without resistance.

16. 16

    Step 16

    

    The finished red-braised beef is glossy, tender and ready to serve.

    ✅ Done when: The beef glistens in a rich reddish-brown sauce, ready to plate.