Beef in Black Bean Sauce with Green Peppers

Beef in Black Bean Sauce, just like the Chinese takeaway. No sorry, I'll rephrase that, better than the takeaway! All freshly cooked, what can be better?

I first raved on about this over a year ago, but as it's so good I'm posting it again. Fermented Black beans are usually preserved in ginger and salt, they will need rinsing and soaking before use. You can buy them from my online shop.

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To serve 4 you will need:

400g very thinly sliced beef - sliced into 1 x 2 inch strips

You will also need:

1 large onion - cut into bite sized pieces

3 dried red chilies - de-seeded but left whole

2 green bell peppers - cut into bite sized pieces

3 spring onions - sliced in half length ways and then cut into cut into 1 inch lengths

about 4 slices fresh ginger - finely chopped (to make about a 1 teaspoon)

2 fat cloves of garlic - finely chopped

2 teaspoons of sugar

vegetable oil for frying

To marinade the beef:

1 tablespoon of vegetable oil

1/2 a tablespoon of cornflour (UK) or cornstarch (US)

1 tablespoon of Shaoxhing (Chinese) rice wine

1/2 tablespoon of light soy sauce

1/2 tablespoon of dark soy sauce

You will also need:

2 tablespoons of fermented black beans - rinsed, drained and then soaked in a little water for 15 minutes.

To make the sauce mix together in a small bowl:

3 tablespoons light soy sauce

1/2 a tablespoon of dark soy sauce

2 teaspoons of sugar

1/2 a teaspoon Chinese black vinegar

1 tablespoon water

1 tablespoon of oyster sauce

2 teaspoon cornflour

How to do it:

Mix together the marinade ingredients and add the sliced beef. Set aside for about 20 minutes to half an hour.

Make sure you've rinsed and soaked the black beans then drain from the water and chop them. You can then mix together the sauce ingredients and add the drained and chopped black beans to it and set aside.

Now, it's a good idea to wear an apron - as this can get messy!

When you have everything at the ready, heat half a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a wok.

First cook the beef; drain what little marinade there is and then stir fry until it's almost cooked - this will take just a minute or two. Remove the beef from the wok and set aside.

Wipe the wok with kitchen paper and heat up the other half tablespoon of oil. When it's nice and hot, add the onions, bell peppers, spring onions and whole dried red chilies. Stir fry for about 3 minutes.

Now add the garlic and ginger and stir for another minute - don't let the garlic burn or it will taste bitter.

Add the black bean sauce mixture and stir fry for a few minutes more.

Put the beef back in giving it all a good stir.

Before serving, remove the whole chillies and discard.

Serve immediately with rice or noodles - whichever you fancy.

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