Ingredients:
4 cups of beef broth or homemade broth (recipe below)
½ lb beef (tenderloin or brisket), thin-sliced
2-3 tablespoons Ying’s Stir Fry Sauce
1 cinnamon stick
2 anise stars
2-3 pieces rock sugar (or 1 teaspoon sugar)
2 slices ginger root
2 tablespoons fish sauce
4-6 oz. fresh or dried rice noodle*
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup bean sprouts
1 bunch Thai basil
1 fresh lime, cut into wedges
1 jalapeno (optional), cut into thin rings
2 teaspoons Sriracha chili sauce
salt to taste
Homemade Beef Broth
1 lb beef bones
1 small onion, cut into chunks
2 quarts water
For home-made beef broth: combine beef bones, onion and water in a pot and bring it to a boil. Add Ying’s Stir Fry Sauce, cinnamon sticks, anise stars, sugar, ginger slices and fish sauce. Turn down heat and let it simmer for 20-30 minutes.
For store-bought beef broth: Heat beef broth in a pot over medium heat, add Ying’s Stir Fry Sauce, cinnamon sticks, anise stars, sugar, ginger slices and fish sauce. Bring it to a boil, turn down the heat and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
Add sliced beef to simmering broth. Cook for a minute, then turn off heat. Place some rice noodle in individual bowls. Ladle hot beef and broth over rice noodles (enough broth to cover the noodles). Add black pepper, bean sprouts and basil while soup is still hot. Drizzle with fresh lime juice. Add jalapeno and chili sauce if desired.
*Note: if using dried rice noodle, soak them in boiling water for 5 minutes first. Rinse in cold water and drain. Then use them according to the recipe.
About Ying's Kitchen
Ying is an Asian cooking instructor and cookbook author. She’s been featured many times by different local newspapers (Daily Herald, The News Sun, etc) and radio programs. She has performed cooking demos for TV shows including Channel 7 and Channel 9 WGN-Lunch Break here in Chicago. She was also one of cooking demo presenters at The Taste of Chicago and The Great American Cooking Expo for the last three years.
Ying was born and raised in northeastern mainland China. She learned a lot about cooking from her father who is an excellent cook. After graduating from teachers college and teaching for a few years, she began a career as a travel agent for international tourists
Traveling around the country afforded her the opportunity to experience the unique tastes the different regions of China have to offer. Over the years, she gained an appreciation for the rich flavors and traditions of each cuisine and for the art of Chinese cooking.
The family-owned restaurant in China (where she has been back many times doing research) also contributes to the success of her teaching. She also had her own cooking show with Monroe Public Access Cable TV, “Ying’s Kitchen”.
Upon repeated students' requests, She self published her first cookbook “Ying’s Chinese Cookbook, Authentic but Simple.” The cookbook contains 115 Chinese recipes from all over China. It includes tips and tricks that make Chinese cooking simple, and the results are revolutionary.
Ying has been teaching Asian cooking for the last decade at community colleges as well as several other cooking schools and library programs in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois and Wisconsin with an ever-growing loyal following of students who love her casual, fun and simple teaching style. Currently she is teaching at College of Lake County and Kenosha Public Museum.
Ying's Kitchen 