There are expressions that don't translate into English with the same oomph they have in Urdu. "Gari mein thhoosna" is one of them and it is a hallmark of the Pakistani experience. It basically means to stuff yourselves into the car, and I mean stuff. Somehow in English it doesn't capture the enthusiasm of children piled onto adults as the 25 people in the house pack themselves into two cars to head out for Chinese food. We would arrive at a Chinese restaurant decorated in the traditional red and gold, places that always knew how to put together enormous tables in minutes. Then soon enough it would be time to inhale the mellow smells of the Chicken Corn Soup (a must) when it arrived and wait with considerable enthusiasm for the "sizzlers", the beef dishes served on hot plates, literally sizzling and smoking as they make their way over. Someone always burnt their tongue sneaking in that extra charred piece. I may or may not be that someone trying to subtly steal a piece of the Beef Chilli Dry.
The idea that this kind of Chinese was specific to the Hakka region was unknown to me at the time. For me this was just Chinese food. When I got to the US and my brother took great pains to me to explain what Hakka food was. I listened earnestly, but did not really comprehend what that meant until I got to college and ordered my first Chinese takeout. It was suspiciously devoid of dried chillies or green chillies or really any chilli. Aah. This Beef Chilli Dry has no red chillies, but the green kind are integral.
This Beef Chilli Dry is my mothers recipe. It is a dish she has made for us a million times over and one that I have made often, but somehow never enough. It also is not one of those things that hangs around forever. I typically make it with my non fried Chinese Rice and Hong Kong Chicken, both recipes that I will share soon. 
The China-Pakistan Connection
Before I go on to the exact recipe for Beef Chilli Dry it occurs to me that I should point out that the reason that Chinese restaurants have always been an integral part of the Pakistani food scene is the shared border with China. It has resulted in close trade ties and the community that calls Pakistan home. Pakistani Chinese restaurant food has traditionally been made by Chinese Pakistanis.
If you make this recipe do take a few seconds to rate it! I would love to see your recreations so tag me on instagram @flourandspiceblog !
A Hakka style Beef Chilli Stir fry recipe that packs a strong flavour punch
- 1 lb thinly sliced beef strips
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp white pepper
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 egg white whipped
- 1 tsp oil
- 2 cloves garlic (crushed or minced)
- 2 Green Pepper, cut into strips
- 4-6 Green Chillies, cut into strips
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- ½ tsp white pepper
- ½ tbsp vinegar
- Oil for cooking
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Marinade the beef strip in the marinade ingredients for thirty minutes
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Pour a lug of oil into a hot wok and stir fry the garlic till it starts to sizzle and change coloue
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Now stir fry the beef, I like to get nice caramelly bits
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Keep moving the beef around in the wok so it doesn't stick together, it cooks fairly quickly
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Add the strips of green pepper and chillies as well as the remaining ingredients, stir fry on high for 2-3 minutes, taste, adjust seasoning if needed with vinegar, pepper and soy. (I always add more!)
This recipe is quick to cook and best served fresh!
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Yes Sarah....those were the days. Great fun filled ones.
Do you whip the egg white till it forms stiff peaks?
nope just whisk to break up!
I made it and it was delicious!
What cut of beef did you use? Going to ditch the vegetarianism this week to make this...😁
Hey Rabia! AM SO SO SORRY - I don't know what was happening here that I missed this from weeks ago! I am full on lame and go to my super desi butcher and ask him for pasandas. That said, I believe standard beef fillets work well. DO let me know how it goes!
Lol I heard the term "hakka chinese" after landing in Canada too (I'm still convinced its desi Chinese that doesnt exist on mainland China) 😅 that said, i love beef chili dry and I never knew how to make it. I will try this, it looks so good!
We always have to with Chinese egg rice...Delicious !!!
This recipe sounds great Sarah. And I love how you talk about your childhood memories. Lovely post!
Aww thank you Susan! that means SO much!
Hey Sarah, I just had to crawl out of the blanket and say this. You taught me how to make kickass dum keema and psanday among other things. I am going to try the beef chilli dry tomorrow. I just really am bad at frying so was wondering if you could let me know if in step 3, do you keep the heat at slow or medium slow or medium. sorry for such a dumb question. Also, thank you again!
Hi Aashi!!! First of all thank you so so much for your sweet words! Secondly that's a great question - stir fries are usually on high heat. So sorry for the late response. Happy Cooking!
I tried this just now! such a fantastic easy quick recipe. My mom is the most strict critic when it comes to my cooking and she usually only takes one bite out of what I make but she actually liked it had it for dinner!
Alright!!! Nothing like a mother's approval! I am also loving the idea of sesame seeds in there!
Also, I added some sesame seeds in the oil with the garlic! turned out perfect
Tried making this last night. It was delicious. Took me back to my days in Pakistan. Thank you for sharing this.
I am absolutely thrilled to hear that!
Hmm, I didn't wake my wife up and tried to follow the instructions but guess I still suck at cooking so I messed up. Well beef was still tender afterwards so I ate it up, cleaned up the mess that comes with stir fry and wife didn't notice a thing. So a win win I supposed.
Hi fahad! I am so sorry to hear it didn't pan out the way you hoped. Can you possibly tell me what was wrong with it? Perhaps next time you can surprise your wife with the actual thing although I am pretty impressed with the clean up job
What beef should we use? I have Tenderloin on hand. Can I use it?
Also, do I have to boil beef tenderloin in a pressure cooker or can i just use it without? I am a fan and made this exact recipe with chicken instead a few days ago and I loved it! I wanted to try it with beef this time tho.
Hi Ibrahim! Slice your tenderloin super thin and then stir fry on high! Happy Cooking!
I fried and fried the thinly sliced beef strips that were marinated as told. They remained raw and not cooked. Made me have a very bad face. All ingredients, all efforts gone to waste. Thank you!
Hi Asad! I am quite surprised to hear that, beef strips cook very quickly but clearly yours needed more time. Perhaps next time you should test the meat for doneness?
I want to ask if I don’t have the under cut,will it be tender after frying?can I boil it first?
I'd just simmer it!