Mongolian Beef
1016kcal65.6g protein42.1g fat92.2g carbs~$4.47/ serving*Estimates computed from the ingredient list; cost uses average US supermarket prices. Not a substitute for packaging measurements or your receipt.
Contains soy · usually contains gluten
Restrictions
ContainssoyIt is in an ingredient you cannot leave out.
Usually containsgluten (soy sauce → Tamari)The usual version has it. One without it exists — it is the one named here.
Diets
No porkNo alcohol
Worked out from the ingredient list. It knows nothing about brands, shared equipment or cross contamination, and it is not a certification — if you have an allergy, you still have to read the label.
Ingredients
Servings:
| 1 lb |  beef (flank, sliced thin across the grain) |
| ½ cup |  cornstarch (a heavy dust) |
| ½ cup | vegetable oil (for shallow frying) |
| ½ cup |  soy sauce |
| ½ cup |  brown sugar |
| ¼ cup | water |
| 4 clove |  garlic (minced) |
| 1 tbsp |  ginger (minced) |
| 6 unit |  scallions (2-inch lengths, a whole bunch) |
| ¼ tsp |  red pepper flakes |
Optional
Not counted above. The dish works without them.
| 1 cup |  rice (steamed) |
Steps
- Season8 minslices dusted in cornstarch, rested 10the beef tossed through the cornstarch until every slice wears a dry white coat, rested while the oil heats — the rest hydrates the dust into a jacket that fries crisp instead of shedding; this dish is the cornstarch-crust thesis at its most extreme
- Fry8 min375°F shallow oil, batches, 2 minutes to crisp edgesthe slices in a single layer per batch until the edges crisp and brown — drained on a rack; they will look overdone and be exactly right, because the sauce ahead is a softening force
- Simmer3 minsauce: aromatics bloomed, then soy + sugar + waterall but a spoonful of oil poured off, garlic + ginger + flakes bloomed thirty seconds, then soy + brown sugar + water at a hard simmer until it thickens to syrup — this sauce needs no cornstarch; the sugar concentration IS the thickener, which is why it candies the way it does
- Glaze2 minbeef + scallions tossed through the syrupthe crisp beef back in with the scallion lengths, tossed until lacquered — the scallions barely wilt, staying half-raw and sharp against the sweet dark beef, which is the entire balance of the dish; over rice immediately, while crust and candy coexist