Stir Fried Beef with Bell Peppers and Snow Peas

Like all stir fries, this dish comes together very quickly once all your ingredients are prepared. This gets most of its flavor from hot bean sauce, a relatively spicy and nuanced sauce found in Asian markets; apparently you can substitute the sauces below for it.

Disclaimer: I killed off this entire recipe in one sitting the first time I made it. Beware. I found this on Fine Cooking.

Ingredients

• 12 oz. flank steak
• 3 Tbs. Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry
• 1 Tbs. minced fresh ginger
• 2 tsp. soy sauce
• 1-1/2 tsp. cornstarch
• Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper
• 1 tsp. plus 2 Tbs. peanut or vegetable oil
• 2 Tbs. hot bean sauce (also called chili bean sauce), chili garlic sauce, or Sriracha
• 2 Tbs. hoisin sauce
• 1 Tbs. minced garlic (from 3 medium cloves)
• 6 oz. snow peas, strings removed (about 2 cups)
• 1 medium red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1/2 x 2-inch strips

Instructions

1. Cut the beef with the grain into 2-inch-wide strips, and then cut each strip across the grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Transfer to a medium bowl. Add 1 Tbs. of the rice wine, the ginger, soy sauce, cornstarch, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1/8 tsp. pepper to the beef. Stir until the cornstarch is no longer visible. Add 1 tsp. of the oil and stir until the beef is lightly coated.
2. In a small bowl, stir the hot bean sauce, hoisin sauce, and the remaining 2 Tbs. rice wine. 
3. Heat a 14-inch flat-bottom wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact. Add 1 Tbs. of the remaining oil, swirl to coat, add the garlic, and stir-fry with a metal wok spatula until fragrant and light golden, about 10 seconds. 
4. Push the garlic to the sides of the wok and carefully add the beef, spreading it evenly over the bottom and sides of the wok in a single layer. Cook, undisturbed, for 1 minute, letting the beef begin to sear, then stir-fry with the garlic until the beef is lightly browned but not yet cooked through, about 1 minute. Transfer the beef and garlic to a plate.
5. Add the remaining 1 Tbs. oil to the wok and swirl to coat. Add the snow peas and bell pepper, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp. salt, and stir-fry until the snow peas are bright green, about 1 minute. 
6. Return the beef with any accumulated juice to the wok. Add the hot bean sauce mixture by swirling it down and around the sides of the wok; if you pour the sauce directly into the center of the pan, the temperature of the wok will drop. Stir-fry until the beef is just cooked through and the vegetables are crisp-tender, 30 seconds to 1 minute more. Serve immediately with jasmine rice.

Serves 2-4.