Scallion beef stir-fry, pronounced cong bao ngau in Cantonese and cong bao niu (葱爆牛) in Mandarin, is an old favorite dish of mine that, in my humble opinion, most recipes and restaurants don’t really get right. It’s a great dish, and some good “wok hay” from a trusty carbon steel wok makes all the difference.
Alas, even some restaurants in Chinatown don’t cook this dish right, and instead you get a bit of a soggy and oily dish where you know the person behind the wok was just going through the motions. Judy’s father, a retired construction worker, found a place that used to do this beef stir-fry justice, and he went there every day for lunch whenever he worked in the area.
My father’s last restaurant actually did not have scallion beef on the menu, but he cooked it frequently for dinner for us after the place closed. (I miss his version of this iconic scallion beef stir-fry dish, but, believe me, I don’t miss the long hours at the old restaurant.)
There are plenty of recipes out there featuring pictures of a saucy dish with bright scallions and beef that looks something like beef with broccoli, but that’s not the essence of the dish––at least not what I am used to. The “bao” in the cong bao ngau, means burst, explode, or crack. That means you gotta make those scallions “crack” with some scorching heat and get them to crackle with as much wok hay as you can muster for this beef stir-fry dish!
This dish should also be dry, with no standing sauce (sorry Sarah, who loves any dish with lots of sauce). Dredging the beef with cornstarch and frying it until seared and slightly crispy really adds flavor and texture. If you’re a fan of our Mongolian Beef, give this recipe a try!
Scallion Beef Recipe Instructions
Mix the beef with 2 teaspoons oil, 1 teaspoon soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes. For more information on preparing beef, see Bill’s post on How to Slice and Velvet Beef for stir fries.
Combine the sesame oil, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, hot water, and white pepper into a small bowl; mix well and set aside. Spread the beef out on a plate, and sprinkle on 3 tablespoons of cornstarch. Toss to coat the beef lightly, shaking off any excess.
Heat your wok until just smoking, and spread a quarter cup of oil around the wok. Add the beef and let the beef sear in the oil on one side for 30 seconds. Flip and let sear for another 30 seconds, and transfer to a plate. Turn down the heat to medium low and remove/discard the excess oil (if there is too much) leaving about 2 tablespoons of oil in the wok.
Add the ginger and let it cook for 15 seconds until it is just caramelized.
Turn up the heat to the highest setting, and add the white portions of the scallions. Quickly add 1 tablespoon of Shaoxing wine, while continuing to stir-fry to deglaze the wok.
Next, add the beef and the rest of the scallions. Stir fry everything together for about 30 seconds, and add the sauce you prepared earlier.
Continue to stir-fry. Hopefully your wok is hot enough, and you can get a nice scorch on your scallions (we say this because not all stoves can get up to the same level of BTUs!). Continue to stir-fry until the liquid has evaporated, and all of the sauce is clinging to the beef and scallions (are you drooling yet?).
Spread 1 tablespoon of shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok. It should be sizzling and evaporate immediately; toss the dish again until the wine is cooked off to generate more wok hay. Turn off the heat and plate!
Serve this Scallion Beef stir-fry with lots of rice!
Scallion Beef Stir-fry
Ingredients
For the beef marinade:
- 1 pound flank steak (450g, sliced thinly against the grain)
- 2 teaspoons oil
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
For the rest of the dish:
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
- 1 teaspoon hot water
- 1/8 teaspoon white pepper
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon ginger (finely julienned)
- ¼ cup vegetable or canola oil (60 ml)
- 4-6 scallions (cut into 2-inch lengths, about 4 cups)
- 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine (divided)
Instructions
- Mix the beef with 2 teaspoons oil, 1 teaspoon soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Let marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Combine the sesame oil, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, hot water, and white pepper into a small bowl; mix well and set aside. Spread the beef out on a plate, and sprinkle on 3 tablespoons of cornstarch. Toss to coat the beef lightly, shaking off any excess.
- Heat your wok until just smoking, and spread a quarter cup of oil around the wok. Add the beef and let the beef sear in the oil on one side for 30 seconds. Flip and let sear for another 30 seconds, and transfer to a plate. Turn down the heat to medium low and remove/discard the excess oil (if there is too much) leaving about 2 tablespoons of oil in the wok.
- Add the ginger and let it cook for 15 seconds until it is just caramelized. Turn up the heat to the highest setting, and add the white portions of the scallions. Quickly add 1 tablespoon of Shaoxing wine, while continuing to stir-fry to deglaze the wok.
- Next, add the beef and the rest of the scallions. Stir fry everything together for about 30 seconds, and add the sauce you prepared earlier. Continue to stir-fry. Hopefully your wok is hot enough, and you can get a nice scorch on your scallions (we say this because not all stoves can get up to the same level of BTUs!). Continue to stir-fry until the liquid has evaporated, and all of the sauce is clinging to the beef and scallions (are you drooling yet?). Spread 1 tablespoon of shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok. It should be sizzling and evaporate immediately; toss the dish again until the wine is cooked off to generate more wok hay. Turn off the heat, plate and serve!
nutrition facts
My second dish I have made so far from the woks life and it was fantastic. Layers of flavor like I never got even from restaurant food. The direction was all payed our easy to follow and being a person that likes to cook I appreciate the advise to get everything ready to go sauces mix before you start makes it go so much easier not to mention wok cooking hoes pretty fast so once you start not a lot of time to cut and mix. One of the best Chinese dishes I have ever had and to think I made it. Love the article that goes along with the recipe makes for fun reading. I found this recipe from pressing the surprise me button it’s just fun being surprised , long as it’s not chicken feet. ;)
Hahaha…why not chicken feet, they are so goooooood to some of us!
This feels like a really dumb question but I’m going to ask it anyways … when you say 4-6 scallions does that means 4-6 bunches of scallions or literally 4-6 scallions.
To make 4 cups, it must mean bunches? Love your site by the way so many great recipes.
Hi Matt, that’s a good question, because depending upon the growing season (at the beginning or end) or if you buy organic, you may need a few bunches to make 4 cups. At the height of the summer season, when the scallions are thick and large, 4 will probably do the trick!
Hi Bill, I was searching for a beef and green onions recipe. My husband loves this dish we get at a Chinese restaurant just over the border in Canada. We do not own a wok, but may consider buying one specifically for this dish. Do you have any Wok recommendations? Thank you in advance.
Hi Lisa, check out our posts for buying a wok and on how to season a carbon steel wok!
does this work with chicken ?
Hi Angela, all I can say is give it a try and let us know if it worked for you :)
Great recipe! I love this dish and have never been able to recreate this at home. This reminded me of my mother dish too!
Hi st, hope you give it a try!
I made this last night and both my husband and I enjoyed it immensely. The instructions and photos in all of your recipes are excellent and my Chinese style cooking has improved since I’ve been visiting your website. Thank you all so much!
You’re welcome Audrey and hope you keep up the great cooking!
I made this last night. It was good, but definitely a little bit on the salty side.
Hi Shantay, yes our version could be a bit salty, which is the way I personally like it (with lots of white rice). But definitely add more scallions (balances saltiness) and adjust the soy sauce to your taste ;-)
Hi, this recipe is perfect and can be used for many different stir fries, they do have this Mongolian beef and scallion thing right on. If its too salty you can throw in a half pound or so of more meat or shrimp or some sliced onions etc but I find if you don’t marinate the meat and skip that part of the soy and leave the meat plain to sear its perfect.
Thanks Shawn, glad you liked it and thanks for sharing your tips!
Yummy!! Made this and I love it! It was a bit salty for me but I guess with the rice and some type of condiment or dip, the flavor would be balanced. :)
Hi Kimiko, yes, white rice with this dish is a must!
I made this just as listed, with the exception that I used chiu chow chili oil in the marinade instead of regular oil. I think it gave it a really nice flavor boost. Overall this was really fantastic and I was able to achieve a nice char on the green onions in my wok. I loved the tip for spreading the rice wine along the ring of the wok, I will definitely have to try that on some of my other recipes.
My only complaint was I thought the sauce was just a tiny bit too salty. I think next time I will cut the soy sauce down to 1 1/2 tbsp. and maybe add a 1/2 -1 tsp of sugar. Probably just a result of my Americanized pallet.
Hi Andrew, If you use Chiu Chow oil, then yes, you probably have to reduce the soy sauce to compensate. Chiu Chow oils (especially the jarred ones) are very tasty and have added salt. Happy cooking!
This sounds really nice recipe. Thanks for putting this up. Will be giving this a go.
Simon
Hope you like this one Simon!