Where'S The Asian Beef? Noodle Soup

• Beefy seasonings:
• 5 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp cooking wine. Shaoxing wine or dry sherry work best, so does rice wine
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp hot bean paste. Miso works too, if you have that in your freezer, but remember to add chili to make it hot
• 4 tbsp oil. Vegetable or peanut is traditional for Chinese cooking; olive oil is not the norm, but-shh, don't tell my Chinese mother-I often cheat and use it anyways
• 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns. This is a spice that numbs-go ahead, put one in your mouth. It's painful and a bit strange at first, but you'll grow to like it. How many times have you heard that? Anyways, if you can't find these peppercorns in the Asian aisle or grocer, use big black ones
• 2 tbsp dried red chilis
• 2 large, long scallions. Cut these down to 2-inch pieces
• 4 quarter-sized slices of peeled, fresh ginger
• 1 pound of beef, cut into 1-inch cubes. Choose chuck steak if you can't find brisket or niu lan from a Chinese butcher
• 1 can of stewed tomatoes or 2 fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped (optional, yummy)
• 6 cups boiling water
• 2 whole star anise
• 1/2 box of spaghetti or linguine, or 1/2 pound of homemade Chinese noodles
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• For on top: chili oil or sauce, coriander leaves, and toasted sesame seeds

1. 1. To get things going: Mix the beef seasonings in a small bowl and set aside. Fill your kettle with 6 cups of water, and turn up the heat.
2. 2. With the stove on high, heat a large, deep saucepan until scorching; add 4 tbsp of oil, and then turn the heat down a little, to medium low. Toss in the dried red chilis and Sichuan peppercorns, stirring and smooshing them into the oil. After about 1 minute, scoop both out and throw 'em out like a bad habit. It's the New Year, after all.
3. Turn up the heat to high again, add scallions, ginger, and cubed beef. Stir to sear the meat on all sides, about another minute. We're almost there. Cover the beef seasonings mixture you made in step 1, and stir. Add the tomatoes, if you choose, boiling water, and star anise. Stir until it comes. To a boil.
4. Then cover and simmer on low heat for 2 to 21/2 hours, until the meat is surrender tender and fat is soft and as see-through as a silk blouse.
5. 3. Boil the spaghetti or linguine as per the directions on your box. Grab some bowls, divvy up the noodles according to how much each person is hungry for. Splash a few drops of sesame oil over them, savoring the nutty smell that emanates when the oil hits the hot noodle, and then pour the hot beef soup over them. Drizzle with chili oil, and sprinkle coriander leaves and toasted sesame on top.

soy sauce, cooking wine, salt, sugar, works, oil, ahead, red chilis, long scallions, fresh ginger, beef, tomatoes, boiling water, star anise, linguine, sesame oil, chili oil

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/wheres-the-asian-beef-noodle-soup-50170981 (may not work)