Niu Rou Mian

Here's a nice bowl of Niu Rou Mein(Chinese Beef Noodle Soup) I had on Saturday:

Guess which restaurant I got it from? It's from restaurant Mi Casa. Actually, Dylan from Eat, drink & be merry, and I decided to do a joint cooking post. In which we'll both make a dish and post. Today, it's Niu Rou Mein. Initially, I had intended to make my usual version, which used a prepared "base" to which I added flavorings to create my soup. But Howie from A Foodie's-Eye View provided his Grandmother's recipe, and even more graciously, gave me permission to reprint here! Thanks Howie!!!!

Niu Rou Mein (Chinese Beef Noodle Soup)

Ingredients
----------------

3 lbs. beef shank, cut into 1 1/2" cubes

(Wrap the following 5 in cheesecloth and tie it up)
4 star anise
1 T peppercorn (they used regular, not szechuan at the
                       time, but you could try it, and maybe
                       reduce the amount)
10 cloves garlic smashed
6 slices of ginger
5 dried red chili peppers chopped

3 T chili paste with garlic
2 T rice wine

1 1/2 T salt
2 T soy sauce
1 T sugar

Instructions
-----------------

1. Get a large, heavy skillet very, very hot, add 1 T oil and enough
beef to not crowd the pan. Repeat until all beef is browned.
The pan should be pretty dry, if not, it probably means the
pan isn't hot enough or isn't retaining heat enough.

2. Remove beef from pan, add 1 T oil to pan, and add chili
paste. Add the beef to pan and coat with chili paste & oil.
Add rice wine, and deglaze pan.

3. Pour contents of pan into a soup pot. Deglaze pan with water
if there's more good stuff left in there. Add the cheesecloth,
cover with water (about 6-7 cups). Add salt, soy sauce, and sugar
to taste. Bring to boil, and simmer for 3 hours.

You probably know the rest of the drill, make some noodles and
serve with broth and meat, and cilantro and green onion garnish.

This is a great recipe; but having made Niu Rou Mein from a base over the last few years; and knowing I'd want to eat it right away, not letting it "cure" over-night I made some adjustments. So here's what "shook out".

I used a combination of Beef Shank w/bone 2lbs & regular Stew Meat 2 lbs.
(Wrap the following 3 in cheesecloth and tie it up)
4 star anise
1 T peppercorn
2 Slices of ginger smashed

15Cloves of Garlic Chopped
4 Green Onions - Whites Only
8 Dried Chilies - seeds and all, torn
8 T Chili Paste
1/4 cup Shao Tsing
1/3 Cup Light Soy Sauce
2 T Dark Soy Sauce
2 T Sugar
4 Cups Beef Broth
6 Cups Water
2 T Ice Water
4 T Corn Starch
3 T Vegetable/Canola Oil

White and Black Pepper to taste
Spinach
Cilantro
Green Onions

1 - Chop beef shank into approx 1x1 cubes. Mix beef with corn starch and ice water - an old Chinese restaurant trick to help tenderize. And let sit for 15 minutes.
2 - While waiting, place pot on high heat.
3 - Add 1T Oil to Pot and start to brown meat over high heat - brown shank first as it;s more tender and doesn't need as much time to tenderize. Add 1T Chili paste for every 2 pounds of meat while browning. Brown in batches and remove meat once done

4 - Add 2 T oil to pot and add torn dried peppers and brown. Once oil and peppers are browned, add the rest of the chili paste and garlic and fry, add shank bones. Deglaze with Shao Tsing, scrapping "fond" off of the bottom of the pot.
5 - Add Beef Broth and seasonings in cheesecloth. Add beef. Bring to a boil and add 6 cups water. Bring to an active boil and lower heat to mild simmer.
6 - Simmer for 2 hours, and taste. Add additional seasoning as necessary and 2T Dark Soy for color.
7 - Slow simmer for another 2 hours, until beef is tender. You can tell by "fork-checking" stew meat.

8 - Garnish with Spinach, Green Onion, and Cilantro.

So what to do while waiting? Maybe try your hand at "modern art?"

So what's the verdict? Well after 6 hours, I liked the spice, and liked the taste, nice, rich, and beefy. But the Missus had Her own opinion. First, the Bad:

1 - Too much anise, she thought it over-powered everything.

2 - Too sweet, didn't like the sugar

3 - She needed salt, too mild

4 - She hated the noodles. I bought some great looking "Hand-made" Shanghai style noodles from 99 Ranch. But in spite of the way they looked they were brittle and didn't have the right pull and resistance.

What she liked:

1 - The beef was not only fork tender, it was "plastic-fork" tender.

2 - The broth was rich and "hearty"

3 -Spice level was perfect.

4 - Perfect ginger flavor.

As a whole better than most restaurants, but not "perfect".

The next day, we had the Niu Rou Mein, as well as the leftover dumplings.

By the next day, all the "edges" had been taken care of. And we had a smooth, beefy, spicy, rich, broth. Though the noodles still sucked......but still delici-yoso!!! The Missus finished up the rest of the meat and soup. The key is the addition of Beef Broth. Unless you have alot of bones and other "savory" parts, making a true stock will be difficult.

Some notes; I don't worry about the chopped garlic and green onion stalks because after 6 hours they start to disintegrate. The cornstarch/ice water mix creates very tender meat - if you want to keep the "soup" longer than 2 days, remove the meat and store separately. Because I used beef broth, I didn't add any salt.

Make sure you check out Dylan's version Here.

Comments

[howie]

Ah! Looks like it turned out lovely! Maybe you should open up your own noodle shop. I'm glad you got a chance to try it out. I should probably give it a try again. It's been over a year since I made it.

Thanks for the tip on tenderizing the meat. I'll definitely give it a try next time.

[clare eats]

looks yummy Kirk, pity about the noodles :p

[Kirk]

Hi Howie - Thanks again for your Grandmother's recipe! I'll probably make this several more times over the winter - need to find some better noodles.

Hi Clare - Hope you're feeling better! It was pretty delici-yoso!!!

[Kristy]

Kirk! Oishi-sou ne?! Mmm...thanks Howie for your family recipe! :)

[Kathy]

Wow! I've always had Niu Rou Mein in restaurants but never once considered making it myself - good job, it looks pretty delicious to me!

[Dylan]

kirk, i love the color of the broth and 'stockiness' of it. how did you get it so beefy?

[Rachel]

mmm kirk that soup looked sooo good! Wish my hubby could cook! your wife is v. lucky! I absolutely love niu rou mein will definitely try that recipe of yours sometime. Thanks for the pics too! cute modern art!

[Reid]

Hi Kirk,

Congratulations on making this. I have a recipe for it given to me by a Taiwanese guy that I have yet to try. You've inspired me, so I will try it soon.

[Kirk]

Hi Kristy - Hai, Zettaini sou desu!

Hi Kathy - It's pretty simple, and really filling.

Hi Dylan - I added 1 qt beef stock, and the dark soy, as well as the deglazing step create the color of the broth. Creating the "chili oil" by browning in oil also helps create color. BTW, your looks great too!

Hi Rachel - What you see is the limit of my "artistic ability", maybe early finger-painting. I'd say this dish came out pretty well - only lasted 3 meals!

Hi Reid - Thanks! It's really the Taiwanese who made this popular in the States, so that recipe must be pretty good!

[Dylan]

taiwanese style NRM is great. thanks for the info kirk. this was fun.

if we open up a NRM shop... i think it'd be a good idea to provide atleast 7-8 types of NRM, from each province in china. kinda how Noodle World in Alhambra does chinese, vietnamese and thai food.

[mealcentric]

I envy you having time to cook and enjoy the fruit of your labor. Cooking is such a relaxing and rewarding hobby. I remember when I used to have time. Now I just eat sh$tty food in the office.
The soup looks delish and though I know it doesnt taste at all like beef stew (Irish style), it sure looks similar.

[Kirk]

Hi Dylan - 7-8 types of Niu Rou Mein -I'd say you're a Niu Rou Mein-iac! This was fun, great idea.

Hi Mealcentric - You're absolutely right. Cooking when you really don't have to cook is very relaxing. Very observant point, I think all types of beef stew start in a similiar fashion, it's just the seasonings that differ. I start my "Local style" beef strw in almost the same way.

[Beth - The Zen Foodist]

LOL at your happy/sad faces. Too cute!

[Kirk]

Hi Beth - Thanks, just fooling around a bit! Actually I started this about 90 minutes before the telecast of the USC game, checked it between quaters, checked and adjusted the flavor at half time. After the game I went out and did some errands, and then came home and ate - who said Men can't multi-task? :o)

[elmomonster]

I've never had this before. It looks amazing! I'll have to try it in a restaurant first and then see if I can duplicate it with your recipe! Great work Kirk and Dylan!

[Pam]

Simply amazing Kirk! Ooooh, I just got an idea for a new post... I should try both of your recipes and do a Battle of the NRM cookoff in my own kitchen. Whose cuisine will reign supreme? Ha ha

[Dylan]

elmo, you've gotta try it. since you're in irvine, try A&J on walnut/jeffrey... next to O'Shine cafe. jeez i hope it's still there, it's been 4 years since i grad'd from UCI. Ask for the beef noodle soup. I don't know how it tastes now, but it was pretty good then. Also try the potstickers (Guo Tieh).

[Kirk]

Hi Elmo - Looks like Dylan's found a place in your neck of the woods! Good Luck!

Hi Pam - Thanks, but it's just noodle soup! If you do Battle NRM - remember to play both parts, with full costume, I'm sure you can pull it off! Also, you need a "Chairman" and 3 judges! Volunteers anyone!

Hi Dylan - Thanks, man!

[Jo]

ummm... That do look yummers. I shy away from Asian style beef stews because the ones I've tried use fatty meats. I really detest the texture of fat. I'm going to have to give this one a shot. Could one use a dry noodle? If so, which one?

[Kirk]

Hi Jo - Well, with this you can choose you cut of meat so that should be no problem. You can use dry noodles, maybe a Shanghai Style thicker noodle, no egg noodles please! But mainly it's up to you.