Lu Niu Rou (Braised Beef Shank)

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This is another one of those recipes that I haven’t had in quite a while.  This dish,like the White Cut Chicken,is also a cold dish and can be served with a dipping sauce.  The beef shank in contrast is pretty flavorful and can be served by itself.

Ingredients:

• 3lb of beef shank (in this case about five pieces from the Chinatown meat market)
• 1 cup dark soy sauce
• 2 cups water
• 3 tsp Sichuan peppercorn
• 8 star anises
• 4 tsp cooking wine
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 8 slices of ginger

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Add the beef shanks and cook for five minutes.
3. Remove the beef shank and run under cold water.  Discard the flash boiling water.
4. In the same pot,add all the remaning ingredients.
5. Bring the mixture to a boil and add the beef shanks.
6. Cook at high heat for about five minutes and reduce the heat to a simmer.
7. Simmer the shanks for three hours,turning every half hour.
8. Remove the shanks and allow to cool.  I usually put them in the refrigerator for at least a night.
9. Slice the beef into very thin slices.

And that’s it!  I find that the meat is salty enough that it doesn’t require any additional dipping sauce.  If desired though,you can serve with always fitting soy sauce/vinegar mixture.