Stewed Beef Brisket in Chu Hou Sauce (Must-Eat Chinese Cuisine)

Stewed Beef Brisket in Chu Hou Sauce (柱侯蘿蔔炆牛腩) is a very popular dish in Chinese family cooking. It suits to serve in whatever seasons or any occasions. Sometimes I deliberately cook this dish in double size and reserve the other portion in our fridge for being as a quick lunch. It goes perfectly with rice or noodle soup. The beef brisket would absorb all flavors and taste wonderful and more delicious.

Ingredients:

1 kg beef brisket, cut into chunks
1 daikon (白蘿蔔)
3 slices ginger
3 star anises
1 green onion
2 tablespoons Lee Kum Kee Chu Hou paste
a small piece of rock sugar
2 liters water

Seasoning:

2 teaspoons light soy sauce
2 teaspoons oyster sauce
1 tablespoon corn flour
2 tablespoons water

Method:

1. Add beef brisket chunks into boiling water to blanch for 3 minutes. Remove and drain.

2. Peel daikon and cut into chunks. Set aside.

3. Heat wok on medium heat, add 2 tablespoons oil to sauté ginger and Chu Hou paste till aromatic. Put in beef brisket chunks and stir well. Add star anises and a bit of rock sugar with water that covers all ingredients. Bring to boil, pour all ingredients into a vacuum pot (thermal pot) to cook slowly until done. Remember to heat the inner pot first to get a better result.

If you don’t have a vacuum pot, here’s a good method to stew beautiful beef brisket:

Cook for about 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave it for 15 minutes. Repeat this procedure three times.

4. Whether you use a vacuum pot or not, when the beef brisket is done, turn on the heat again, whilst boiling, add daikon chunks and stir well. Turn off the heat and leave for 15 minutes. Then turn on the heat again and bring to boil. Add seasoning to thicken sauce to your preferred consistency.

5. Arrange 1 or 2 pieces of fresh lettuce on a plate. Pour beef brisket with sauce over the lettuce. Sprinkle with chopped green onion. Serve hot.

Tips:

1. Adding a small piece of rock sugar will help to soften beef brisket resulting in a tenderer texture . I learned this trick from my mother-in-law who is an expert on stewing beef brisket.

2. The procedures of turning on and off the heat can help to shorten the cooking time and save energy.

3. If the beef briskets you buy are too fatty, it’s better to trim them beforehand. Here’s another trick that I’ve experimented for several times. Having cooked beef brisket chunks for 30 minutes, let them cool down and put in a fridge for 3 hours. The fat would become solid and can be easily removed with a spoon.