Beef, Asparagus & Snow Pea Stir-Fry

A soggy stir-fry isn't the sauce's fault. When the wok is too cold and too crowded, everything stews in its own juices instead of searing. The fix is simple: heat the wok until you see whispers of smoke, sear the beef in a single layer in batches, keep the greens bone-dry and add the sauce last. With mid-October asparagus and the first snow peas of spring, it's a 25-minute weeknight dinner.

PREP TIME

15 minutes

COOK TIME

10 minutes

SERVES

4 with steamed rice

Ingredients

Beef and marinade

400 g sirloin (striploin) or rump steak
1 tbsp light soy sauce
3 tsp cornflour
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp water

Stir-fry sauce

¼ cup (60 ml) oyster sauce
1 tbsp light soy sauce
½ tsp dark soy sauce
2 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp Chinese salted black beans, rinsed and finely chopped (optional)

Final splash (keep separate)

2 tbsp Shaoxing wine
1 tsp white vinegar

To cook

3 tbsp vegetable, canola or rice bran oil (not olive oil)
2 bunches asparagus (about 350 g), woody ends snapped off, cut diagonally into 5 cm lengths
150 g snow peas, strings removed
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 cm piece ginger, cut into fine matchsticks
2-4 dried long red chillies, snipped into pieces (optional)
3 spring onions, cut into 4 cm lengths, white and green parts separated
Steamed jasmine rice, to serve

Hands slicing raw beef into thin strips with a MAKO Japanese steel chef knife on a wooden chopping board.

METHOD

1. Slice and marinate the beef.

Trim the steak and slice it thinly (about 5 mm) across the grain, on a slight diagonal. Toss it with the soy sauce, cornflour, bicarbonate of soda and water. Leave it for 10-15 minutes while you prep everything else, and no longer.

2. Mix the sauce.

Stir the oyster sauce, both soy sauces, sugar, pepper, water and black beans (if using) together in a small bowl. Measure the Shaoxing wine and vinegar into a separate small cup for the final splash.

3. Dry the greens.

Wash the asparagus and snow peas, then spin them dry or roll them in a clean tea towel until there's no water left.

The fix: water on the veg turns straight to steam and drops the wok's temperature, which is how a stir-fry starts to stew.

Fresh snow peas being added to a hot black steel wok with asparagus and aromatics during stir-frying.

4. Heat the wok properly.

Heat the wok gradually, starting at medium and working up to high, until you see whispers of smoke. On induction, MAKO recommends a lower setting because the wok heats up very quickly. Add 1 tbsp of the oil and swirl it over the base and sides.

5. Sear the beef in batches.

Add half the beef and quickly spread it out into a single layer. Leave it alone for 45-60 seconds until browned underneath, then toss for 30 seconds. It should be about three-quarters cooked. Tip it onto the plate. Reheat the wok for a moment, add another 1 tbsp oil and repeat with the rest of the beef.

The fix: a single layer in batches means every strip touches hot steel. Pile it all in at once and the wok cools down, the juices pool and the beef stews.

6. Veg by density.

Add the remaining oil. Add the asparagus and stir-fry for 1½-2 minutes until bright green and blistered in spots. Add the garlic, ginger, dried chillies and spring onion whites and toss for 20 seconds until fragrant. Add the snow peas and toss for 30 seconds.

Beef, asparagus and snow pea stir-fry being tossed in a MAKO black steel wok over a gas burner.

7. Sauce goes in last.

Return the beef and any juices to the wok. Pour in the sauce and toss for 30-60 seconds, until the beef is just cooked and everything is glossy.

The fix: the sauce is the final step, not the cooking liquid.

8. Final splash, then off the heat.

Splash the Shaoxing wine and vinegar around the hot edge of the wok and toss for 10-15 seconds. Take the wok off the heat straight away and toss through the spring onion greens. Keep the wine and vinegar to this quick splash. Carbon steel doesn't suit acidic ingredients cooked for long, so they never simmer in the wok.

9. Serve.

Serve straight away with steamed rice. You can set the wok on the kit's silicone trivet and serve at the table.

Tips and make-ahead

Make ahead: Slice the beef, mix the sauce and prep the veg up to 1 day ahead. Keep them separate and covered in the fridge. Marinate the beef just before cooking.
Why the bicarb: A small amount of bicarbonate of soda in the marinade keeps the beef tender. Don't leave it for longer than 15 minutes or the texture turns spongy.
No Shaoxing? Leave out the final splash, or use 1 tbsp apple juice instead.
Thick asparagus: Halve very thick spears lengthways so they're tender-crisp in about 2 minutes.
Double batch: Cook it in two full rounds rather than one crowded one.
Wok care: Hand wash with warm water and the natural brush, dry the wok completely over low heat, then wipe on a thin layer of high-smoke-point oil. No dishwasher. If anything sticks, bring a little water to the boil in the wok and loosen it with a wooden spatula.