Mongolian Beef, One Pan (Meng Gu Niu Rou)

The story

The joke among Chinese cooks is that Mongolian beef is about as Mongolian as General Tso's chicken: it was born in Taiwanese and American-Chinese kitchens, built on a glossy soy-caramel glaze and an unreasonable amount of scallions. It is a 30-minute showpiece that tastes like a Friday night.

Ingredients (6 + pantry staples)

• Flank or skirt steak, sliced thin against the grain — 12 oz / 350 g
• Scallions — 5–6, cut into 2-inch lengths
• Soy sauce — 3 tbsp
• Brown sugar — 2 tbsp
• Cornstarch — 2 tbsp, divided
• Garlic — 3 cloves, sliced

Pantry staples used (don't count toward the 6): cooking oil. Not stocked yet? See the pantry page.

Steps

1. Toss beef with 1 tbsp cornstarch; rest 10 minutes.
2. Sear beef in hot oil in a single layer, 1–2 minutes per side; remove (work in batches — crowding steams it).
3. Garlic for 20 seconds, then soy sauce, brown sugar and 1/3 cup water; simmer 2 minutes until syrupy.
4. Beef and scallions back in; toss 1 minute as the glaze coats everything. Rice is mandatory.

Swaps

Chicken thigh or lamb slices work identically. Add a crushed dried chili if you want the P.F. Chang's-style warmth.