Chinese Tomato and Beef Recipe: Healthy and Delicious Beef Curry!
Beef is one of the most popular proteins used in Chinese cuisine. The Chinese techniques for cooking beef include marinating thin slices of beef, which reduces the cooking time and makes the beef tender. If you want a slightly tangy kick in your beef, you can try this Chinese tomato and beef recipe.
It needs just a few ingredients to make, but the flavor can knock many other beef recipes out. You also don’t need a lot of time to make this recipe. Why wait further, when you have the detailed recipe below? Let’s make it.
Table of Contents
Overview Of This Recipe
Making this tomato and beef recipe will be a lot easier if you check the overview chart. It has some helpful information.
| Course: Main | Cuisine: Chinese | Difficulty: Medium | ||
| Total Time: 35 minutes | ||||
| Serving | Preparation Time | Cooking Time | Calories | |
| 2 persons | 20 minutes | 15 minutes | 305 kcal | |
Tools and Utensils You Need
Keep the following tools and utensils ready so that you don’t have to waste time finding them.
- A medium bowl
- A kitchen knife
- A frying pan
- Measuring spoons
- A spatula
Ingredients Needed for the Recipe
Struggling to find the ingredients for this recipe in videos online? Don’t worry, I have an organized list of the ingredients.
- Beef: 1 lb, sliced
- Ginger: 2-inch block, sliced
- Green Onion: 2-3 stalks
- Light Soy Sauce: 1 tbsp
- Oyster Sauce: 1 tbsp
- Cornstarch: 1 tbsp
- Cooking Oil: 2 tbsp
- Garlic: 2 cloves, sliced
- Tomato: 2 pcs
- Salt: ½ tsp
- Sugar: ½ tsp
Chinese Tomato and Beef Recipe: Step-By-Step Instructions
You can make this recipe by just reading the recipe once. Let me show you the detailed steps.
Step 1: Cut and Marinate the Beef
Wash beef thoroughly and cut it into thin slices so that they get cooked easily. Take the slices in a bowl. Add sliced ginger and chopped green onions to the bowl. Then, pour 1 tbsp of light soy sauce and 1 tbsp of oyster sauce over the beef.
You Can Also Try: Chinese Beef Tendon Recipe
Add 1 tbsp of cornstarch and 1 tbsp of cooking oil to the beef as well. Mix everything and marinate the beef slices for 15 minutes.
Step 2: Stir-Fry Beef Slices
Put ½ tbsp of oil in a pan and add the marinated beef slices to it. Stir-fry them for about five minutes. The beef slices shouldn’t be cooked fully in this step. Take them out when they change color.
Step 3: Make the Sauce and Add Fried Beef
Add ½ tbsp of oil and sliced garlic to the pan. Then, add diced tomatoes and cook them for a few minutes. When the tomatoes are soft, season them with salt and sugar. Then, add the fried beef slices and stir-fry for five more minutes. Sprinkle some chopped green onions when serving it.
Chinese Tomato And Beef Recipe
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Wash beef thoroughly and cut it into thin slices so that they get cooked easily. Take the slices in a bowl. Add sliced ginger and chopped green onions to the bowl. Then, pour 1 tbsp of light soy sauce and 1 tbsp of oyster sauce over the beef.
- Add 1 tbsp of cornstarch and 1 tbsp of cooking oil to the beef as well. Mix everything and marinate the beef slices for 15 minutes.
- Put ½ tbsp of oil in a pan and add the marinated beef slices to it. Stir-fry them for about five minutes. The beef slices shouldn’t be cooked fully in this step. Take them out when they change color.
- Add ½ tbsp of oil and sliced garlic to the pan. Then, add diced tomatoes and cook them for a few minutes. When the tomatoes are soft, season them with salt and sugar. Then, add the fried beef slices and stir-fry for five more minutes. Sprinkle some chopped green onions when serving it.
Nutrition Facts of the Recipe
Chinese tomato and beef curry is a calorie-rich dish that provides 305 calories per serving. Besides, it has a lot of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Take a detailed look at the nutrients.
- Total Carbohydrates: 11g
- Protein: 27g
- Total Fat: 16g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g
- Monounsaturated Fat: 3g
- Total Dietary Fiber: 1g
- Total Sugar: 3g
- Cholesterol: 69mg
- Sodium: 945mg
- Potassium: 744mg
- Calcium: 59mg
- Iron: 2.7mg
- Vitamin A: 1115IU
- Vitamin C: 19.5mg
You get a good amount of protein from this dish. It also has a notable amount of carbohydrates and fat, most of which is unsaturated fat. So, this is a healthier option compared to many other beef recipes. Also, the cholesterol level of this dish is comparatively lower.
Though it has a lot of sodium, the potassium content is also high. It will cancel out some of the bad effects of sodium. The amount of Vitamin A and Vitamin C in this dish is high.
Do’s and Don’ts of the Recipe
Following the footsteps of experienced cooks gives you some secret techniques that can make your cooking better. Here are some tips for this recipe.
Do’s
- The longer you marinate the beef slices, the tastier the dish will be. If you have time, marinate the beef for one hour or longer.
- Use high heat to fry the beef slices. It will sear the beef slices quickly. Getting some color on the beef slices is important for the perfect flavor.
- Instead of fresh tomatoes, you can also use canned tomatoes for this recipe.
Don’ts
- Don’t use a lot of sugar for this recipe, as it will alter the authentic taste of this curry. Just use a small amount to balance the flavors.
- Don’t use more oil than recommended. It will increase the fat and cholesterol content of the recipe.
Can I Make This Recipe with Other Types of Meat?
Of course. You can use pork or chicken to make this recipe. The pork and tomato recipe comes out excellent. But, the chicken and tomato recipe might not be everyone’s favorite. This is because chicken cooks much faster than beef.
On top of that, the chicken slices will dry out faster if you cut them thinly. So, the beef and tomato dish is the best option of all.
Can I Store the Tomato and Beef Curry In the Fridge?
Yes. This is a suitable dish if you want to make a large amount of curry for later. After making the curry, you should let it cool down completely. Then, put it in separate containers.
Store the containers in the fridge and the curry will be good for a few weeks or even months. When necessary, you can just take them out 30 minutes earlier and reheat the dish.
How Do I Adjust the Spiciness of This Recipe?
You can do it in multiple ways. The easiest way is to add some freshly ground black pepper to the dish. I prefer adding some chopped red chilies so that they match the overall color of the recipe.
Another way is to use Chinese chili paste. If you use chili paste, you need to fry it for some time with the garlic. Do this before adding the tomatoes. Otherwise, there will be a raw smell of the chili paste in the dish.
Should the Sauce Be Thick or Thin in This Recipe?
The ideal sauce of this traditional tomato and beef curry should be on the thicker side. Remember the cornstarch you added to the beef? It will thicken the sauce.
However, the sauce shouldn’t be too thick and the tomatoes shouldn’t be fully melted. You need to feel some of the tomato chunks while eating this dish.
Conclusion
Tomato and beef complement each other so nicely that you will fall in love with the slightly tangy flavor of this curry. Making this dish requires almost no technical knowledge and the cooking takes just 15 minutes. So, you can make it often and provide a good source of calories for your family.
As this dish is also high in nutritional value, you can include it in your menu without major health concerns. However, eating too much beef might not be good for your health.
