Spicy Szechuan Beef Recipe

If you prefer your food on the spicy side, chances are you're a fan of Szechuan cuisine. While not every dish that originates from China's southwestern Sichuan province is guaranteed to set your tongue on fire, the tongue-numbing spicy flavor is definitely the region's preferred flavor profile. There's no saying why this specific flavor is so common in the region, but it may be due to the fact that the area tends to be very hot and humid. Eating spicy foods can actually help your body cool down, making this spicy Szechuan dish a perfect dinner for a hot summer night.

Recipe developer Susan Olayinka, who blogs at The Flexible Fridge, tells us "I love spicy food!" but admits, "I never used to until I met my husband." She brings the heat with this spicy Szechuan beef in three different ways: with chili oil, crushed red pepper, and Szechuan peppercorns. This dish is hot enough to make you sit up and take notice, but the heat isn't so powerful that it overwhelms the flavors from the meat and veggies. 

A couple of the ingredients on the list may not be all that easy to come by if you don't live in a major metropolitan area, but that doesn't mean you'll need to pass on the recipe altogether or even have to pay a premium to order the necessary items online. Instead, you can try a few simple ingredient swaps. No mirin on hand? Dry sherry or marsala could work. If you don't have these, try dry white wine, or you could even use rice vinegar for an alcohol-free version. If you use either of the latter two substitutes, you might need to add a quarter to half a teaspoon of sugar.

The Szechuan peppercorns are what makes this recipe so true to the flavors of Sichuan, and Olayinka tells us, "Most westernized versions do not include these." If you can't get hold of them, Tellicherry peppercorns or grains of paradise can be used in their stead, though you'll need to double the amount of the latter. As neither of these two ingredients is all that easy to come by, though, you might prefer a third alternative: half freshly ground black pepper, half coriander seeds. If you can't locate coriander either, you can always just make do with black pepper, although the flavor won't be quite the same.

Slice up the red pepper and the carrot into matchstick-sized pieces. Although you don't have to peel the carrots before you slice them, you might want to do so since the peel can add a slightly bitter taste. Once the veggies are prepped, set them aside for a minute and pour a tablespoon of chili oil into a large pan. Turn the heat to medium-high, and once the oil is starting to sizzle, add the veggies to the pan. Cook the pepper and carrots for three to four minutes, then set the cooked veggies to one side.

Olayinka suggests serving the Szechuan beef over rice, and she also says you can garnish the dish with sliced spring onions and sesame seeds to make it look pretty in case you're inclined to snap a few pics of your dinner before you dig in. The rice doesn't need to be the traditional steamed white rice, however, since you can use brown rice or even cauliflower "rice" if you prefer. You could also swap out the rice for noodles or even zoodles for a delicious, nutritious meal you can have on the table in under a half an hour.

According to Olayinka, any leftovers will keep for three to four days in the fridge. "Put it in the microwave to reheat," she says, adding "or you could put it on the stove for a couple of minutes."