Beef Noodle Soup (Szechuan Style)
Utterly savory Szechuan-style beef noodle soup with homemade beef broth, star anise, and Chinese five-spice powder in fried chili bean sauce.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 lb beef stew meat
- 4 oz watercress
- 12-15 shiitake mushrooms
- 4 eggs, soft boiled
- 8 oz Chinese noodles, or ramen, or udon
- 1-inch chunk ginger, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed and roughly sliced
- 5 cups water
- 1 tablespoon red wine
- 4 tablespoons
- chili bean sauce
- 2 tablespoon sugar
- 5 tablespoons Canola oil, divided
- 3 star anises
- 2 teaspoons five-spice powder
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 stem green onion, chopped for garnishing
- sesame oil
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Place beef stew meat in a medium bowl; add red wine and a pinch of salt and pepper; stir well.
- In a large saucepan, heat up 2 tablespoons Canola oil over medium-high heat; add seasoned beef, stir until the outside of the beef starts turning brown (about 5 minutes).
- Add 5 cups water into the saucepan. Switch heat to high and bring to a boil, then simmer.
- While the meat is simmering, heat up 3 tablespoons Canola oil over medium-high heat in a small skillet (about 2 minutes).
- Add sugar and fry until it starts turning brown; now add star anise, five-spice powder, ginger and garlic; stir for about 10 seconds; quickly add chili bean sauce. Stir well and cook on low for about 1 minute.
- Transfer the chili bean sauce mixture to the large saucepan; add soy sauce, then simmer for 25 minutes.
- In the meantime, boil eggs. (Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a small saucepan, gently add eggs and let them boil for 4.5 minutes for soft-boiled eggs or 5 minutes for hard-boiled eggs. Drain and let the eggs sit in cold water for 5 minutes before peeling.)
- After 25 minutes of simmering, add noodles and mushrooms in the saucepan; bring to a boil. Once the beef noodle soup is boiling, add watercress, then immediately turn off the heat. Stir until the vegetable starts to wilt.
- To serve, divide the noodle soup into 4 bowls evenly; drizzle with sesame oil; place one soft-boiled egg in each bowl; sprinkle with chopped green onion. Enjoy!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4