Vietnamese shaking beef gets its name from the violent wok tossing technique that sears cubes in 90 seconds flat.
Shaking Beef
Get ready to indulge in a vibrant dish that will have your taste buds dancing! This Shaking Beef recipe features tender chunks of marinated steak seared to perfection, tossed with fresh herbs, and served over a bed of fluffy rice. A splash of lime and a hint of garlic elevate this dish, making every bite a burst of flavor you won't forget!
The Story
This Vietnamese-French love child was born in 1950s Saigon when French colonists discovered Vietnamese street vendors tossing cubes of beef in screaming-hot woks—the French technique of searing meat met Vietnamese fish sauce wizardry, creating a dish that literally shakes the pan while cooking, hence the name that stuck when refugees brought it to California's Little Saigon in the 1970s.
Regional Twist
In Ho Chi Minh City's District 1, street vendors swap the brown sugar for palm sugar and double the fish sauce, then finish with a squeeze of calamansi lime that cuts through the oyster sauce's richness.
Prep
15
min
Cook
5
min
Serves
2
people
Level
beginner
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
450
Protein
28g
Carbs
42g
Fat
15g
📝 Ingredients
Pantry Items
Amounts also listed in instructions below
- 8 oz (227 g) beef
- brown sugar (to taste)
- dark soy sauce (to taste)
- fish sauce (to taste)
- garlic (to taste)
- light soy sauce (to taste)
- oyster sauce (to taste)
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Cut beef into 1-inch chunks.
- 2
In a bowl, mix beef with dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, garlic, fish sauce, and brown sugar. Marinate for 15 minutes.
- 3
Heat oil in a pan over high heat. Sear beef for 1 minute per side without moving. Then stir and cook for another minute. Remove from heat.
- 4
Serve beef over a bowl of rice. Garnish with cucumbers, tomatoes, and fried onions if desired.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Cut beef against the grain at a 45-degree angle to break muscle fibers and reduce chewing resistance by up to 60%.technique45-degree angle
- ✓Heat your pan to 450-500°F before adding beef so proteins coagulate instantly, creating the Maillard reaction crust that defines 'shaking beef's' texture.equipment450-500°F
- ✓Marinate for exactly 15-20 minutes because longer exposure to soy sauce's sodium breaks down protein structure too much, making beef mushy.timing15-20 minutes
- ✓Use a 2:1 ratio of light to dark soy sauce to balance umami depth with color development without over-salting the beef.ingredient2:1 ratio
- ✓Cook beef in single layer batches to maintain pan temperature above 400°F - overcrowding drops temperature by 100°F and causes steaming instead of searing.technique400°F minimum
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