How To Prepare Lanzhou Beef Noodle Soup (兰州拉面)?

By Author: Coba Grill HK
Total Articles: 90
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Preparation:

Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time: 35 min
Serving: 6

Ingredients:

● 2 to 3 lb (1.4 to 1.8 kg) beef shin bones (*see footnote 1)
● 2 lb (1 kg) untrimmed beef flank, brisket, or round roast (*see footnote 2), cut into 3” (7 cm) pieces
● 2 Chinese scallions or 4 green onions, white part, cut into 4” (10 cm) pieces
● 1 thumb ginger, sliced
● 5 cloves garlic
● 5 Chinese dried chili peppers
● 5 whole cloves
● 2 bay leaves
● 1 teaspoon whole Sichuan peppercorn
● 1 teaspoon fennel seed
● 1 whole nutmeg
● 1-star anise
● 1 cinnamon stick
● 2 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
● 1 small daikon radish, peeled and sliced to 1/2” (5 mm) quarters
● 1.3 to 2 lbs (600 to 900 g) fresh Lanzhou noodles (or 1 to 1.3 lb / 400 to 600 g dried wheat noodles)

Serving

● Homemade Chinese chili oil (for serving)
● Soy sauce (for serving)
● cilantro, chopped (for garnish)
● green onion, sliced (for garnish)

Instructions: ...
...

To cook the broth
1. Add the beef bones and meat to a large pot with 8 cups of cold water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Once boiling, reduce to medium heat. Skim off and discard the brown foam that rises to the top. Continue skimming until the broth becomes almost clear, about 10 minutes. For the full step-by-step guide, check out the recipe 中文 here.

2. Transfer the meat and bones into the Instant Pot, and pour in all the broth. You can keep cooking on the stovetop if not using an Instant Pot. (*Footnote 3)

3. (Optional) Add the cloves, Sichuan peppercorn, and star anise into a tea infuser. Submerge the tea infuser in the broth.

4. Add the scallion, ginger, garlic, dried chili pepper, bay leaves, fennel seed, nutmeg, and cinnamon stick into the Instant Pot. Set the pressure on high, and timer for 1 hour. Once done, let pressure release naturally. If you want to use fast release, do a natural release for at least 20 minutes first, to prevent it from spilling.

5. Once done, remove and discard the spices, aromatics, and beef bones using a pair of tongs. You can also strain the broth if that is easier. But you need to pick out the meat separately.

6. You might find a thick layer of oil floating on top of the soup (depending on the fattiness of the beef). Use a ladle to skim the oil off according to your preference (*footnote 4).

7. Add salt and mix well. Taste the broth and adjust the seasoning if needed. The broth should taste a bit salty by itself, so it will be perfect after adding the noodles. You can also adjust the seasoning later, after assembling the bowls.

8. Turn on the saute function if using Instant Pot. Add the daikon radish and cook until tender, 10 minutes or so.

9. Boil the noodles according to the package instructions.

To assemble noodles

10. Add noodles to each serving bowl, then pour in the broth. Top noodles with beef, a few pieces of daikon radish, and some cilantro. Serve immediately with chili oil and soy sauce on the side. Enjoy hot as a main dish.

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