Cherry & Dennis Helper Habitat
Taiwanese Tomato Beef Noodle Soup
台式番茄牛肉麵
Recipe overview
Beef chuck braises for ninety minutes in a red tomato, soy and star-anise broth before it is ladled over springy noodles and greens.
01
Ingredients
Main ingredients
- 800 g beef chuck
- 600 g tomato
- 600 g fresh Shanghai wheat noodles
- 1500 ml beef stock
- 4 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 20 g rock sugar
- 2 piece star anise
- 25 g ginger
- 4 clove garlic
- 250 g Bok choy or choy sum, optional
02
Tools
- knife
- cutting board
- stockpot
- saucepan
- colander
- ladle
- tongs
- measuring cup
- measuring spoons
- serving bowl
03
Steps
Step 1
Cut beef into large cubes
Cut the beef chuck into roughly 4 cm cubes, trimming large pieces of hard sinew and excess surface fat.
Step 2
Blanch and rinse the beef
Put all 800 g beef in cold water, bring to a full boil and blanch for 5 minutes. Drain, rinse each cube under warm water and wash the pot clean of grey scum.
Step 3
Cut tomatoes into wedges
Core the tomatoes and cut each into 6–8 wedges, keeping softer pieces for the broth and firmer ones to hold their shape.
Step 4
Fry ginger garlic and star anise
Fry the ginger, garlic and star anise in a little oil over medium heat for 2 minutes, until the garlic edges turn pale gold.
Step 5
Cook the tomatoes for five minutes
Add all 600 g tomato wedges and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, pressing one quarter of them against the pot, until they release red juice but some wedges remain intact.
Step 6
Return beef and add soy sauces
Return the beef, add both soy sauces and toss for 30 seconds until every cube is evenly stained.
Step 7
Add stock and rock sugar
Pour in the beef stock to cover the meat, add the rock sugar, stir it off the base and bring to a boil.
Step 8
Braise the beef for ninety minutes
Bring the broth to a boil, reduce to low, cover with the lid slightly ajar and braise for 90 minutes. Turn the beef every 30 minutes, until a fork enters easily but the cubes hold shape.
Step 9
Blanch the greens for one minute
Boil the bok choy in a separate pot for exactly 1 minute, until bright green and just tender at the stem; drain immediately so it does not continue cooking.
Step 10
Cook noodles until springy
Boil the fresh noodles for about 4 minutes. Bite or cut one strand: it should have no white core but still feel springy, then drain.
Step 11
Divide noodles and greens among bowls
Place one quarter of the noodles and bok choy in each bowl before adding the beef and broth.
Step 12
Ladle beef and broth over the noodles
Bring the beef broth back to a full simmer for 2 minutes. Give each of four bowls equal noodles, greens, beef and tomato, then ladle over enough piping-hot broth to cover half the noodles.
Common mistakes
- Skipping the five-minute blanch leaves grey scum in the finished broth.
- A hard boil during the braise makes beef dry and broth cloudy.
Tips
Turn the beef every thirty minutes without leaving the lid off.
Cook noodles separately so released starch does not cloud the broth.
