Brought to you by Corelle Brands

Hed Chef: Why you need to love flank steak right now

Let this cheaper cut of beef surprise you with its flavoursome tenderness

Stir-fried beef with ginger and scallion. Kitchenware courtesy of Corelle Brands. PHOTO: HEDY KHOO

SINGAPORE - For too long have I ignored the flavourful goodness of less popular cuts like the flank steak. I spent most of my life up to recently salivating over ribeye, tenderloin and the ultimate porterhouse. But I was clueless when it came to cuts like flank steak.

It took a butcher repeated attempts to convince me I should give flank steak a try. I finally did so. Marinated and stir-fried, the flank steak packed flavour and was surprisingly tender. My only regret is missing out on delicious flank steak all these years.

Now, the very first step to enjoying flank steak in a stir-fry is to get the slicing done right. I notice that different butchers can differ in how they slice flank steak. The rule to thumb is to slice the meat against the grain, not along or parallel to the grain. Not unless you fancy a great jaw workout of continuous chewing.

The butcher I go to favours cutting the flank steak on the bias, which means slicing across the grain at a 45-degree angle.

So far, I find that either method of slicing flank steak renders pretty tender results. Once the meat is sliced right, half the battle is won.

The next thing to tackle is the marinade. I personally favour the use of Chinese rose wine. If you don't have this at home, skip using it. Using Shaoxing wine will suffice. With the marinade, there is no need to season the beef when stir-frying.

By all means, do a taste test, and season with a little salt if you like it slightly saltier.

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  • Care for your cookware

  • Corningware Plasma Cast Aluminium Cookware 28-cm saute pan
  • 1. Before using the cookware for the first time, hand wash it thoroughly with warm soapy water. Rinse and dry.

    2. Use cooking utensils made of wood, nylon, silicone or plastic for your cookware.

    3. Always allow the cookware to cool completely before cleaning. For stubborn residue, make cleaning easier by pouring hot water and a little detergent into the cookware. Allow the water to cool before washing.

To stir-fry the beef, I used the 28-cm saute pan from a new line of Corningware Plasma Cast Aluminium Cookware, recently launched by kitchenware maker and distributor Corelle Brands. The product line includes a 32-cm wok and a 5-litre sauce pot.

The cookware, crafted from cast aluminium, has excellent heat distribution and you need only low to medium heat to cook your food. This is what the accompanying manual says.

Putting the saute pan to the test, I found that it did perform well on medium heat. The pan makes it easy to brown the beef without it getting burnt or overcooked.

The cookware also has a patented medical grade bio-ceramic coating that stands up to abrasion and heat well. The cookware can be used on gas, induction, halogen and electric coil cookers.

Coming up next week is a recipe for Braised Fish Head.

STIR-FRIED BEEF WITH GINGER AND SCALLION

INGREDIENTS

280g flank steak, sliced
⅛ tsp Chinese rose wine
1½ Tbs Shaoxing wine
1 tsp sesame oil
¼ coarse black pepper
1 Tbs light soy sauce
1 Tbs oyster sauce
1½ Tbs cornflour
3 Tbs cooking oil
15g ginger, sliced
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced lengthwise
10g spring onion, cut into 5-cm lengths

METHOD

1. Place the beef in a bowl. Add the Chinese rose wine, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, coarse black pepper, light soy sauce, oyster sauce and cornflour.

PHOTO: HEDY KHOO

2. Mix well. Cover the bowl with clingwrap and place it in the fridge to marinate for two hours.

3. Heat oil in a saute pan and add the ginger slices. Fry over medium heat for a minute or until edges are slightly browned. Remove the ginger from the pan and set aside.

4. Add the sliced garlic to the pan and fry for a minute until the edges begin to brown.

PHOTO: HEDY KHOO

5. Add the beef into the pan. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes.

PHOTO: HEDY KHOO

6. Add the fried ginger slices into the pan.

7. Throw in the spring onion and toss briefly for 30 seconds.

8. Serve immediately.

Makes four servings.

Kitchenware courtesy of Corelle Brands


Special promotion

Enjoy discounted prices when you purchase Corningware Plasma Cookware from now until the end of October (2018), while stocks last.

The promotional price for the 28-cm saute pan is $79 (usual price: $99), the 32-cm wok is $89 (usual price: $109) , and the 24-cm sauce pot is at $69 (usual price: $89).

The cookware is available for purchase at BHG Bugis, Tangs VivoCity, OG Albert, OG Orchard Point, OG People's Park.

Corningware is celebrating its 60th anniversary with roadshows. For more information, go to www.corellebrandsasia.com/event-promotions

For enquiries, call 6468-2008.

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