Beef noodle soup is a dish found in many Chinese restaurants and Taiwanese boba (bubble tea) cafés. It is said to have originated from the Hui people, a Chinese Muslim ethnic group, during the Tang Dynasty of China. It was brought to Taiwan by veterans who fled from Mainland China during the Chinese civil war. The addition of soy sauce later differentiated the Taiwanese version of the broth from the original.
Every winter many of us gather around the table to chow down on our friend Joey’s famous beef noodle soup. He brings all his ingredients up to a cabin in Mammoth to make this warm and delicious concoction for all the hungry skiers after a day on the slopes. Joey starts the prep the evening before, skis during the day, and lets the beef simmer in the broth for hours. By dinner time we have the most tender, falling-apart meat possible.
Beef noodle soup is a favorite of my husband’s and mine, so I am grateful that Joey was willing to share this recipe with us that was taught to him by his mother.
So here it is in Joey’s words:
Ingredients:
- beef shank
- roma tomato
- carrot
- ginger
- baby bok choy
- cooking oil
- soy sauce
- soy paste
- chilies in oil
- noodles
(Amounts to follow the recipe)
Kitchenware:
- sauté pan or any wide surface pan
- stockpot or large pot
- tongs
- spoons
Shopping and planning:
I like going to 99 Ranch Market (Chinese Supermarket, but any market should be fine) because they have a butcher in the back that helps me cut the beef shank (tough meat to cut at home). Have them cut it into bite-sized pieces (stew meat size) or you'll have to do a little more work at home.
Chinese Supermarkets also have the soy sauce, soy paste, and jar of chilies in oil that I like to use.
Ratios:
- Buy a half pound of beef shank per person. 10 people = 5 pounds of meat.
- Buy 1 medium tomato + 1 medium carrot + 1 handful of baby bok choy + 1-inch ginger root for every 1 pound of meat.
- 5 pounds of meat = 5 tomato = 5 carrots = 5 handfuls of baby bok choy + a 5-inch ginger root.
- Buy a neutral tasting high smoke point oil to sear the meat like canola, grapeseed, vegetable, etc.
- Buy soy sauce, soy paste, and a jar of chilies in oil.
- Buy noodles that are predominately enriched wheat flour + water + egg + salt mix.
Directions:
1. Crack open a beer or pour yourself a glass of wine for your cooking extravaganza.
2. Cut the meat, give it a quick rinse, and let it drain in a colander.
3. Peel your ginger root and slice diagonally into 1/4 inch thick and 1-2 inch long pieces.
4. Set whatever pan you like to use to medium-high heat and add a little oil to sear the meat until golden brown.
5. Add one slice of ginger with the meat to brown a little.
6. When the second side is about to finish searing, add a teaspoon of the chilies in oil and let that fry for a little bit.
7. Deglaze the fond with soy sauce and transfer the mixture into a large stockpot.
8. Completely deglaze with some water and add that delicious fond to the large stock pot.
9. Repeat steps 1-8 until all the meat has been beautifully browned and added to the large stock pot.
10. Alright. Most of the hard work has been done!
11. The large stockpot should have enough water to cover the meat because we've been deglazing with water.
12. If there isn't enough water, then add water to cover the meat and bring to a simmer.
13. Peel carrots and cut diagonally into 1/4 inch thick and 1-2 inch long pieces and add to stockpot.
14. Cut tomatoes into 1/8ths and add to stockpot. Make sure to cut out the stem scar because it's ugly.
15. Add some water to fully submerge the beef + tomato + carrot mix.
16. Bring to a boil and taste for seasoning. Too salty? Add water. Too bland? Add soy sauce. Too gamey? Add soy paste (for the sugar). Not spicy enough? Add another teaspoon of chilies.
17. Simmer for at least 6 hours or until beef is tender.
18. Check every hour because the water level will drop and you'll need to add water back.
19. Bring back up to a boil and adjust seasoning again if needed.
20. I like to periodically skim some of the scum off.
21. When the stew is all done, then cook noodles according to instructions.
22. Blanch the bok choy in the hot water and we're all done!
For Serving:
Add noodles to a bowl, place the bok choy on top, and ladle the soup all over.
Optional:
- You can get crosscut beef shank that includes a piece of the femur to add additional beef flavor + yummy bone marrow.
- A little minced garlic and onion is usually added while browning the meat.
- Garnish with sliced scallions/chopped cilantro/chopped pickled mustard greens is popular.
- A mixture of star anise/cinnamon stick/whole black peppercorn/fennel seed/cumin seeds are also frequently added.
I don’t usually do the optional stuff because I like to keep it simple. :-)
