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Cumin Beef Stir Fry

September 19, 2024

Stir-fried with tons of fresh ginger, garlic, cumin and sichuan peppercorns, our cumin beef recipe gets a seriously delicious, take-out level dinner on the table, fast.

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Cumin Beef Stir Fry on a plate topped with fresh cilantro

Bursting with spicy, savory goodness, our easy cumin beef recipe is seriously going to knock your socks off! Loaded with ginger, garlic, cumin and the tingling magic of sichuan peppercorns, homemade cumin beef stir-fry isn’t just better than restaurant food — it’s so much faster than waiting for take-out food to be ready, too. Served with some White Rice and Steamed Broccoli, it’s such a simple, healthy, fast way to get your Chinese food fix.

flank steak, onion, garlic, soy sauce, corn starch, ginger, sichuan peppercorns, cumin, sesame oil and cilantro in prep bowls

Cumin Beef Ingredients

  • Beef: for cumin beef, we always use flank steak! It’s tender and lean, and it stir-fries beautifully.

  • Shaoxing wine: Chinese Shaoxing wine is a rice wine that’s mostly used for cooking and you should be able to find it in most Asian grocery stores. If you can’t find it, though, it’s OK to substitute dry sherry.

  • Sichuan peppercorns: Sichuan peppercorns are a key ingredient in a lot of Chinese recipes (we use them in our Dan Dan Noodles, and our zingy Hot And Sour Cabbage). They’re not actually a whole lot spicier than black peppercorns, but they are known for their mouth-tingling (or even numbing) quality. You can find them in Asian grocery stores.

  • Cumin: warm and completely unique, cumin is a spice that we usually associate more with Middle Eastern cuisine than Chinese, and maybe that’s part of why we love this dish so much. It’s surprising and unique (in addition to being a quick and easy dinner!).

  • Soy sauce: we like to use low-sodium soy sauce, and add a little salt to taste if need be.

  • Dark soy sauce: Dark soy sauce is a bit different from regular soy sauce. It has a much thicker texture, almost like molasses. You can find it pretty easily at Asian grocery stores (for example,H Mart carries it) but you can substitute molasses if you cannot find it.

  • Cornstarch: Just a little bit of cornstarch helps the cumin beef sauce stick to the beef pieces.

  • Neutral oil: You’ll use this oil for stir-frying the cumin beef, so you need an oil that can take high heat. Avocado, canola, corn, grapeseed, regular or light olive oil would all work.

  • Onion: We treat it more like a vegetable than a seasoning in our cumin beef recipe, but you will want to be sure to slice it into thin pieces so that no one gets a massive mouthful of onion.

  • Fresh garlic: five cloves of garlic may seem like a lot, but take-out cumin beef tastes so delicious because restaurants do not hold back. Go to town on the garlic, you won’t regret it.

  • Ginger: Fresh ginger adds a little spicy-sweet heat that’ll make the cumin beef taste restaurant-level delicious.

Shaoxing wine, salt, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and cornstarch  being mixed in a bowl
sliced flank steak being tossed with Shaoxing wine, salt, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and cornstarch

How To Make Cumin Beef

  1. Whip up a quick marinade for the beef: Add the flank steak pieces to a mixture of Shaoxing wine, salt, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and cornstarch.

  2. Stir-fry the beef! Over high heat, cook the beef slices in oil. You might need to work in batches so that the heat stays high enough to get the beef really nice and almost-crisp (if you overcrowd the pan, the heat will drop). Put the beef aside.

  3. Stir-fry the onion, and once it’s soft, finish the dish by adding all the seasonings — garlic, ginger, sichuan peppercorns, and cumin — along with the beef.

  4. Your cumin beef is done! We always garnish with a drizzle of sesame oil and some fresh cilantro.

steak tossed with Shaoxing wine, salt, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and cornstarch being cooked in a skillet
onion, garlic, ginger and peppercorns being cooked in vegetable oil in a skillet
Flank steak added to a skillet with onion, garlic, ginger and peppercorns
Cumin Beef Stir Fry on a plate topped with fresh cilantro

Tips + How To Store Leftovers

  • Serve cumin beef simply over white rice, or as part of a Chinese food feast (that might be a fun dinner party theme!) with other favorites like Kung pao chicken, Chinese Dry-Fried Green Beans, or chicken chow mein.

  • Like most stir-fry recipes, cumin beef tastes best right after it’s cooked. However, leftover cumin beef will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days (and between us, it’s pretty delicious cold).

Cumin Beef Stir Fry on a plate topped with fresh cilantro

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Cumin Beef Stir Fry

  • Serves:  4
  • Prep Time:  20 min
  • Cook Time:  20 min
  • Calories:  320

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce or molasses
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 pound flank steak, trimmed, cut against the grain into ¼-inch-thick strips
  • 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • ½ small yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 5 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tablespoon grated, peeled fresh ginger
  • 2 teaspoons Sichuan peppercorn, ground
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
  • ¼ cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Method

  1. In a large bowl combine Shaoxing wine, salt, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and cornstarch until smooth. Add steak and toss to coat.

    sliced flank steak being tossed with Shaoxing wine, salt, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and cornstarch
  2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil in a large wok or skillet over high heat. Once the oil is glistening, working in batches, add the steak in a single layer and cook, undisturbed, until slightly crispy, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.

    steak tossed with Shaoxing wine, salt, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and cornstarch being cooked in a skillet
  3. Reduce the heat to medium and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Once the oil is glistening, add the onion and cook, stirring often, until beginning to soften, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, peppercorns, and cumin and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.

    onion, garlic, ginger and peppercorns being cooked in vegetable oil in a skillet
  4. Return the steak along with any collected juices to the wok. Drizzle with the sesame oil and toss to coat. Serve sprinkled with cilantro.

    Cumin Beef Stir Fry on a plate topped with fresh cilantro

Nutrition Info

  • Per Serving
  • Amount
  • Calories 320
  • Protein 25 g
  • Carbohydrates 5 g
  • Total Fat 21 g
  • Dietary Fiber 0 g
  • Cholesterol 68 mg
  • sodium 735 mg
  • Total Sugars 1 g

Cumin Beef Stir Fry

Questions & Reviews

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  • Carissa

    This was really different that what I normally cook and I'm so glad I tried it. My favorite thing I've cooked in a while!

    Thanks Carissa, glad you loved it!