Fast, easy classic. Roasts don’t have to be roasts if you know what you’re doing. Scallion beef boom-fry(蔥爆牛肉 cōngbàoniúròu) is flavorful, super tender and absolutely DELICIOUS. We eat this with plain rice, or get creative and turn the dish into fried noodles(Chow Mein/炒麵/ChǎoMiàn), or tacos! BONUS: Tips and tricks to making beef extra tender and flavorful. Read about why this is called a “Boom-Fry”, not just stir-fry.
Scallions
Scallions are in season, not the 1′ type you’d get at supermarkets, but the 4′ version at Rochester Farmers Market. The long, beautiful, fat, and juicy kind, just like I’d find in Taiwan. These scallions make the best Scallion Pancakes (蔥油餅). In Taiwan, we use SO MUCH scallion in our cooking- whether it’s a garnish or in actual dishes. They are used to elevate flavors or to mask unwanted scents- like fishy taste or less quality cuts.
When making stir-fry dishes, scallions are often chopped up in 1″ sections, whites and greens are separated. Whites are flash-fried first to add flavors to the oil and greens last to maintain the greenness and crisp.
The Tenderest Scallion Beef Boom-fry
Not just for scallion beef, but in any stir-fry dishes. Back in the day, quality cuts could be hard to come by. People would slice the beef up thinly(2-3mm), and stir-fry on super high heat fast to keep the beef tender. The method is called “爆” (bào), the literal translation is “explode” thus we’re calling it BOOM-FRY!
We’re using a roast from Vreeman Farms we got at the Rochester Farmers Market, their beef is very lean and high quality, one of the tastiest beef we’ve ever had. Unfortunately, with extra lean meat, it’s also easier to screw up.
Here are a few tips to ensure your beef will stay tender and delicious:
- Slice it thin, 2-3mm. The easiest way is to slice is to have a sharp knife, and do it while the cut is still half frozen. Hard meat is much easier to slice than defrosted soft one.
- Marinade the meat in “tenderizer”- Oil, rice wine, egg whites, and corn starch(or tapioca starch). These ingredients add “fat” back to the meat, tenderizes them, or create a silky smooth illusion to make the meat seems more tender.
- Fry it on high heat, fast, cook it halfway through and remove from heat. Add the beef back to the dish when everything else is ready.
Get creative with this dish!
Stir-fry Noodles 
Serve with Plain Rice 
Tacos
Ingredients
- 1 lb Beef Thinly Sliced (2-3mm)
Marinade
- 1 TBsp Corn Starch
- 2 TBsp Soy Sauce
- 2 TBsp Toasted Sesame Oil
Stir-fry Ingredients
- 1/4 C Vegetable Oil Peanut, canola, olive oil
- 2 Bunches Scallions Chopped into 1" sections, Whites and Greens Separated
- 4 Cloves of Garlic Minced
- 1 Thai Chili (Optional) Or more if desired
- 2 TBsp Oyster Sauce We prefer Lee Kum Kee for homey flavors
- 1 TBsp Soy Sauce
- 1/2 TBsp Sugar
Instructions
Marinade the Beef
- Mix marinade ingredients and thinly sliced beef together, keep in the fridge for 10- 30 mins.
Stir-fry
- In a pan or a wok, heat up 1/4C Cooking oil on high. Add the marinaded beef and stir quickly. Turn the heat off, strain and remove from heat. About 2 minutes. The beef should change in color, but only lightly cooked.
- With the remaining oil in the wok(or add 1TBsp if it's dry), heat up on high and add the minced garlic, whites of scallion, and Thai chili in order, stir-fry for a minute.
- Add the beef back to the wok, the rest of the seasoning and greens of the scallions. Toss and fry for another minute. Adjust flavor to taste. (Add more salt if desired)
- Remove from heat and serve.
