You may have ordered Hunan Beef from your local takeout joint before.
The Americanized version is pretty variable, depending on who’s making it. I once asked my father and other Chinese restaurant chefs—what’s the deal with Hunan Beef? Even they confessed to not know much about it other than the way that particular restaurant prepared it!
Americanized Hunan Beef vs. Authentic Hunan Beef
Let’s set the record straight. There’s an Americanized way to prepare Hunan Beef, and an authentic Chinese way.
This is—you guessed it—an authentic Chinese Hunan Beef recipe, so you all can taste what Hunan Beef should really be like!
In my opinion, the Chinese American version is too often the same as any other brown sauce stir-fry (like beef with mixed vegetables, beef with string beans, etc.), and just not as tasty as what you can find in China.
Most Chinese takeout restaurants simply add peppers, a few dried chili peppers, and chili oil to a basic Chinese stir-fry sauce. While Hunan Province is known for its love of spicy peppers, though, adding a few peppers to the dish does not make it authentic Hunan!
Hunan Beef in China is usually smoky and spicy. Dry smoked beef is a specialty of the region. Almost like beef jerky, this beef is reinvigorated when it hits a wok full of peppers and fermented black beans.
It’s a hard-to-find ingredient (a local and incredibly authentic Hunan restaurant in our area makes their own!), so we’re using regular beef and lightly frying it to create that dry, crispy texture.
Trust us. If you give this dish a try, you’ll have a real taste of China right in your kitchen!
What’s the Difference Between Hunan and Sichuan (Szechuan) Cooking?
While Hunan and Sichuan cooking both make liberal use of chili peppers, there are some key differences. Many of you are familiar with Sichuan cooking (it’s grown in popularity outside of China in recent years), but you might be scratching your heads about what exactly Hunan cooking is like.
The key difference is that alongside chili peppers, Sichuan cooking often uses the flavor of numbing Sichuan peppercorns (in a dish of spicy numbing Mapo Tofu, for instance). In Hunan cooking, spicy peppers are used without a numbing agent, creating a “gan la” (干辣) or “dry spicy” flavor rather than “ma la” (麻辣) or spicy numbing flavor.
Hunan dishes are more purely spicy, with dried, fresh, and/or pickled peppers used to add depth and variation, along with lots of garlic, fresh ginger, fermented black beans, other pickled ingredients (like pickled long beans), and cured/smoked ingredients. Most authentic Hunan stir fry dishes also do not have much sauce, making them drier than many Sichuan dishes, which employ more oil.
As a result, it’s well known among Chinese people that Hunan dishes can actually be spicier than those from Sichuan! (Those of you who’ve sweated over Sichuan food are probably in disbelief right now.)
To try more Hunan dishes in addition to this one, here are some of our other Hunan recipes:
- Hunan Pork and Tofu
- Hunan-Style Whole Steamed Fish
- Hunan-Style Eggplant
- Pickled Long Beans with Pork
- Eggplant String Bean Stir-fry
- Steamed Duo Jiao Fish
Picking Your Peppers
Ever since we started the blog, the pepper-loving community has really kept us on our toes about pepper varieties and spice levels!
Peppers are vital to Hunan Beef, but the peppers you use are a matter of personal preference. We like to use a variety—both spicy and sweet. Poblano and Holland peppers are mild, but if you want more spice, you can add Fresnos or jalapeños to the mix. We had a great pepper crop in our garden this year, so we used a mix of what we had!
Remember that the addition of the dried chili peppers can add a lot of spice (also depending on whether you chop them to release the seeds inside or leave them whole), so you’ll want to consider those factors as well.
Hunan Beef Recipe Instructions
Step 1: Marinate the Beef
In a medium bowl, combine the sliced flank steak with the baking soda, water and oyster sauce. Massage these ingredients into the beef until any liquid has been absorbed by the meat. Marinate for 30 minutes. For more information on preparing beef, see Bill’s post on How to Slice and Velvet Beef for stir fries.
Next, lightly dredge all of the beef slices in cornstarch. Set aside until ready to fry.
This technique is similar to what we do in our Mongolian Beef to create a crispy crust, but for more details on marinating beef, see our post on How to Prepare Beef for Stir Fry.
Step 2: Prepare Peppers
Slice all the fresh peppers crosswise into thin slices on the diagonal. Set aside the dried red peppers. Do not break them open or chop unless you want a very spicy Hunan Beef!
At this time, you may also want to prepare the other ingredients––the shallots, ginger, garlic, black beans, and scallions.
Step 3: Prepare Sauce
Stir the sugar into 2 tablespoons of hot water until dissolved. Add the Chinese black vinegar, soy sauce, and ground white pepper. Mix until well combined and set aside.
Step 4: Fry the Beef
Heat your wok over high heat until smoking. Spread ⅓ cup oil around the wok, and sear the beef in three batches on both sides until browned and slightly crispy on the outside.
Be sure the wok and oil are hot each time you add a batch of beef.
Drain the crispy beef by moving it up to the side of the wok.
The oil will drain to the bottom and you can then transfer the beef to a sheet pan or plate. No need for paper towels or wire racks!
After frying the beef, leave about 2 tablespoons of the oil in the wok, and remove any excess. If your wok got burned in the frying process, this is a good time to wash it. While you want the beef flavor from frying, you definitely don’t want burned bits in the stir-fry if you got carried away with the heat during frying.
Step 5: Assemble the Hunan Beef
Set the wok over medium heat. Add the sliced ginger and fry until caramelized, about 30 seconds.
Next, add the shallots.
Continue to fry for another 30 seconds, and add the fresh peppers (except for the red holland or fresno peppers). Turn the heat up to high and stir-fry for 1 minute to get a nice sear on the peppers.
Clear a section on the bottom of the wok, and add the dried chili peppers. Let them toast in the oil for 20 seconds. (If you want your dish spicier, add the dried chili peppers earlier, along with the shallots.)
Next, pour the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok. Add the sliced garlic, fermented black beans, and the red Holland or Fresno peppers. Stir-fry for another 30 to 60 seconds on high heat.
Next, add the fried beef…
And pour over the pre-prepared sauce.
Maintain the highest heat possible and stir-fry everything together for 20 seconds. Add the scallions.
Continue to stir fry until most––if not all––of the sauce has evaporated. Remember that most authentic Hunan stir-fried dishes are relatively dry, without any pools of sauce.
Serve your spicy Hunan Beef with steamed rice and enjoy!
Hunan Beef
Ingredients
For the beef:
- 1 pound flank steak (sliced 1/4-inch thick)
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
For the rest of the dish:
- 1 red Holland pepper (25g, deseeded; can substitute red Fresno peppers)
- 1 small green bell pepper or poblano pepper (100g, deseeded)
- 1 small red bell pepper (100g, deseeded)
- 2 banana peppers (80g, deseeded)
- 8 whole dried chili peppers
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons hot water
- 1/2 teaspoon Chinese black vinegar
- 2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- 1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil (for frying)
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger (8g, sliced)
- 1/2 cup shallots (thinly sliced, 40g)
- 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine
- 5 cloves garlic (15g, sliced)
- 2 tablespoons fermented black beans (20g, rinsed)
- 2 scallions (60g, cut at an angle into 2-inch lengths)
Instructions
Preparation:
- In a medium bowl, combine the sliced flank steak with the baking soda, water and oyster sauce. Massage these ingredients into the beef until any liquid has been absorbed by the meat. Marinate for 30 minutes.
- Lightly dredge all of the beef slices in cornstarch. Set aside until ready to fry.
- Slice all the fresh peppers crosswise into thin slices on the diagonal. Set aside the dried red peppers. Do not break them open or chop unless you want a very spicy Hunan Beef!
- Stir the sugar into 2 tablespoons of hot water until dissolved. Add the Chinese black vinegar, soy sauce, and ground white pepper. Mix until well combined and set aside.
- Heat your wok over high heat until smoking. Spread ⅓ cup oil around the wok, and sear the beef in three batches on both sides until browned and slightly crispy on the outside. Be sure the wok and oil are hot each time you add a batch of beef.
- Drain the crispy beef by moving it up to the side of the wok. The oil will drain to the bottom and you can then transfer the beef to a sheet pan or plate. No need for paper towels or wire racks!
- After frying the beef, leave about 2 tablespoons of the oil in the wok, and remove any excess. If your wok got burned in the frying process, this is a good time to wash it. While you want the beef flavor from frying, you definitely don’t want burned bits in the stir-fry if you got carried away with the heat during frying.
Assembling the stir-fry:
- Set the wok over medium heat. Add the sliced ginger and fry until caramelized, about 30 seconds.
- Next, add the shallots. Continue to fry for another 30 seconds, and add the fresh peppers (except for the red holland or fresno peppers). Turn the heat up to high and stir-fry for 1 minute to get a nice sear on the peppers.
- Clear a section on the bottom of the wok, and add the dried chili peppers. Let them toast in the oil for 20 seconds. (If you want your dish spicier, add the dried chili peppers earlier, along with the shallots.)
- Next, pour the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok. Add the sliced garlic, fermented black beans, and the red Holland or Fresno peppers. Stir-fry for another 30 to 60 seconds on high heat.
- Next, add the fried beef and pour over the pre-prepared sauce. Maintain the highest heat possible and stir-fry everything together for 20 seconds. Add the scallions. Continue to stir fry until most––if not all––of the sauce has evaporated.
Hi! Do u think this recipe will work with chicken? My family doesn’t eat beef!
Hi Nikita, yes, using chicken should yield a very tasty dish!
I always find beef hard to work with, but this one came out so juicy and tender! The flavor is great too! It came out a bit heavier, I think I might need to go lighter on soy sauce. One of the best beef dish I have ever cooked!! I skipped the dry peppers for a kid friendly version. They gave me two thumbs up!
Hi Jo Li, sounds like you did an outstanding job with our Hunan Beef recipe :)
Made this tonight. I put the chiles in at the end but should have put them in sooner and cut them in half. They were very fresh but long. Anyway, not enough heat. I’ll adjust that next time. So, I also added more ginger…just because. :-) Probably more garlic too if I remember correctly… All in all an excellent recipe. The beef tenderized very nicely and browned up and crisped nicely too. Thanks!!
You’re welcome Dottie and thanks for sharing your cooking details for this Hunan beef recipe :)
I used your recipe as an inspiration- following as closely as I could with what I had on hand and what I got was excellent. I used your silking technique for the beef I had which was crucial in turning a tough cut of meat into relatively tender bites. Your explanation of the differences between Sichuan and Hunan cooking is informative. The sauce for this recipe is, as in all of the recipes I’ve tried here, excellent. I like the layout and your detailed instructions. I feel like I’ve learned alot about cooking here. So, the 5 stars are more of an overall score for your site.
Hi Audrey, thank you so much for your thoughtful comment. Happy cooking!
This right here is the best dish. I’ve made many, but this one has everything.
Thanks for your endorsement Nathaniel!
The local Hunan restaurant has a beef in garlic sauce dish on its menu. I’d like to make it at home, but I ‘m not sure what the components of the sauce are. I have not found a recipe online that looks similar enough to the one at the restaurant. Most of the recipes I’ve found are for Hunan beef. Do you have a beef in garlic sauce recipe?
Hi Sandra, we don’t have a beef in garlic sauce recipe yet, but Chinese restaurants vary the way they cook them. You can try using beef in place of pork in our pork and garlic sauce recipe.
Best dish I’ve made in weeks and the first dish I made after seasoning my new galvanized steel wok. This was just awesome!! I had several kinds of peppers, so used a variety with jalapeño. Used a touch of fire pepper oil. The part that made this amazing was how tender the beef was. I used TheWoksOfLife tips for marinating the beef with baking soda beforehand. It was tender and delicious! I’m going to try to find some tips for chicken dishes. Thank you! Love your tips and recipes!!
Hi Tracy, you’re welcome and keep up the great cooking!
This is ok but it didn’t have that deep flavor that I am used to. The spice was ok. Maybe I am used to something different but have eaten this meal in several different restaurants and states. My husband liked it but he has not had the one I am used to – to compare it to.
Hi Candace, like we said in the article, this dish really varies from restaurant to restaurant. Curious to know where you have had Hunan beef and what the difference was.
I think it might be MSG that’s missing – you can add a little and a little occasionally won’t harm you but I prefer this version. This is the best website for me – also like Recipetineats thanks you so much Woksoflife people because Chinese was the only food I could master but that’s all changed now and it’s so healthy and quick
Hi Nick, you might be right, a little MSG could kick things up a notch. We like Nagi at recipetineats – she has some great recipes!
Fantastic!
I love this!!! I made it with tofu instead of beef, but it still turned out beautifully! I’ve always loved Hunan beef at Chinese American restaurants but this authentic Chinese version is next level!
Hi Maddy, glad to see you tried this Hunan beef with tofu instead of beef and also loved the results!