Deep Fried Honey

Grab a large bowl and toss in the sliced flank steak along with everything else listed in the ‘marinade’ section of ingredients: the soy sauce, cornstarch, rice wine vinegar, pureed garlic, chili oil, and sesame oil. Stir together well, making sure all of the seasonings and sauces are evenly distributed throughout the meat. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes – if you’re marinating for longer stick it in the fridge. 

In another bowl whisk together everything listed under ‘sauce’: the beef broth, soy sauce, light brown sugar, Shaoxing wine, fish sauce, ground ginger, and cayenne pepper. Set that aside, too. 

Place a large saute pan or wok over medium-high heat and drizzle in a bit of vegetable oil. Swirl it around to coat the surface and let the pan heat up for a minute or so. Add the flank steak in a single layer – you’ll need to sear it in batches – and let cook undisturbed for 2 minutes, then use tongs to flip and stir the meat around until it’s mostly browned. Remove that batch and continue to cook the steak in batches until it’s all been seared, adding more vegetable oil as needed. 

Once all of the steak has been seared add the remaining vegetable oil to the pan and toss in the onion. Sprinkle over a pinch of kosher salt and cook just until they begin to soften – about 3 minutes. 

Add the flank steak back to the pan along with the sauce you made earlier, the fire-roasted tomatoes, honey, and crushed red pepper flakes. Stir everything together well. The steak should be pretty much submerged in the liquid – refer to the video if needed – and if it’s not, add a bit more beef broth until it is. 

Cover with a lid, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the steak is tender – you should be able to break it apart with a spoon – stir in the sliced bell peppers. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes, until the bell peppers are crisp-tender. 

Add the tablespoon of cornstarch to a very small bowl. Transfer two tablespoons of the cooking liquid from the pot – be careful, it’s hot! – and stir that into the cornstarch. Stir until no lumps remain, adding more cooking liquid if needed. Once you have a slurry the consistency of gravy pour it into the pot and stir it in. Cover and turn off the heat, letting it rest for a couple of minutes. Stir everything well again before serving. Dassit!