P. F. Chang's Mongolian Beef

I love the P. F. Chang's in Boston. I went there, in my first limousine(!), with a group of co-workers for a Christmas gathering and then we went to a play in the theater district that's nearby. I don't remember a lot about the play, but I do remember I loved the food. After having dined there it was difficult to enjoy Chinese food any place else; their food is just that good.

I was fortunate enough to find this fabulous recipe for Mongolian Beef on Meemo's Kitchen. Have you visited Pattie's blog there? She has a ton of super secret and copycat restaurant recipes: Olive Garden, Outback, Red Lobster, Hard Rock Cafe, just to name a few. I spent a looong time there perusing all those delicious recipes and she has a ton I want to try!

I didn't have the Mongolian Beef on my only trip to P. F. Chang's so I can't swear to its authenticity, but I can swear that Ole Sweetie-Pi devoured his dinner when I served him this.
If you like the flavor of teriyaki beef, I think you'd enjoy this as well. For us, this is an absolutely keeper recipe!

P. F. Chang's® Mongolian Beef

Sauce

2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 pound flank steak (to make slicing easier, put the beef in the freezer for 30-45 minutes to freeze slightly)
1/4 cup cornstarch
4-6 large green onions

For the sauce:

Heat 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add ginger and garlic to the pan. Quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches. If your oil is too hot, this may splatter, so be careful. Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then bring the heat up to medium heat and allow the sauce to boil for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat.

Slice the slightly frozen flank steak against the grain into 1/4-inch thick slices. Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts.

Coat the steak pieces with a very thin coating of the cornstarch on both sides of each piece of beef. Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.

Heat one cup of oil in a wok or skillet over medium heat until it's hot, but not smoking. Add the beef to the oil and sauté for two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges. Stir the meat so that it cooks evenly. After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon or a spider to take the meat out and onto paper towels.

Pour the oil out of the wok or skillet. Put the pan back over the heat, add the meat back into the wok or skillet and simmer for one minute. Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring. Add the green onions. Cook for one more minute, then remove the beef and onions with tongs or a slotted spoon to a serving plate. Leave the excess sauce behind in the pan.

Servings: 2