Crispy Lamb With Cumin, Scallions and Red Chiles

Crispy Lamb With Cumin, Scallions and Red Chiles
Evan Sung for The New York Times
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(853)
Comments
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Dongbei cai is the food of Northeast China. Weiliang Chen, the chef at Northeast Taste Chinese Food, the biggest of the Dongbei restaurants in Queens, makes an elegant, tender version of a popular Dongbei stir-fry of lamb with dried chilies, made fragrant and crunchy with cumin seeds — a legacy of the nomadic Mongols who long ruled Central Asia, carrying spices on horseback along with their arrows. Lamb is considered a Northern taste and excessively “strong” by many Chinese cooks; it is always cooked with powerful aromatics, like chili peppers and garlic, to subdue it. —Julia Moskin

Featured in: Northeast China Branches Out in Flushing

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 1tablespoon egg white
  • 1tablespoon rice wine or dry sherry
  • 2teaspoons cornstarch
  • 1teaspoon salt, more to taste
  • ½teaspoon black pepper
  • 1pound boneless leg of lamb or lamb shoulder, cut into strips about ½ inch by 2 inches
  • 3tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2tablespoons cumin seeds, lightly cracked in a mortar or grinder
  • 2tablespoons whole dried red chile peppers, about 2 inches long
  • 4scallions, white and green parts only, cut on diagonal into 1-inch lengths
  • Sesame oil, for seasoning
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

379 calories; 30 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 16 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 4 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 22 grams protein; 364 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a bowl combine egg white, wine, cornstarch, salt and pepper. Add lamb and set aside to marinate 1 hour.

  2. Step 2

    Heat a large wok or skillet over high heat until a drop of water sizzles on contact. Swirl half the oil into wok and carefully add lamb, spreading it in a single layer. Let sear a moment, then stir-fry briskly just until lamb is no longer pink. Transfer to a plate. (If your wok is not large enough to hold all the lamb, do this in 2 batches, using extra oil.)

  3. Step 3

    Swirl remaining 1½ tablespoons oil into empty wok, add cumin seeds and chiles and stir-fry a few seconds until cumin seeds start to pop. Press chiles against sides of wok to char their skins.

  4. Step 4

    Add scallions and stir-fry 1 minute. Then return lamb to wok and stir-fry 1 to 2 minutes more until lamb is cooked through. Turn off heat, sprinkle with salt and drops of sesame oil, and serve immediately.

Ratings

4 out of 5
853 user ratings
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Comments

As noted in the list of ingredients, it's important to use only the white and green parts of the scallions. Discard the orange and purple parts, or use in another recipe. Hope this is helpful.

Hello, People! The recipe calls for cumin seeds! -- not powdered cumin! That's why you (mistakenly) thought there was too much cumin. And you also do not need an alternative to the prescribed chilis. If you follow the recipe -- and don't eat the chilis (they are not meant to be eaten!) -- it will not be too spicy.

Actually, avoid that - there's a reason there are never vegetables in regional Chinese dishes like this. They'll soak up all the oils and make them worse than not having them in the first place.

I suspect the ingredient list should read scallions, "white and LIGHT green parts only" rather than "white and green parts only."

Added some bell red pepper and bok choy which I first simmered in chicken broth. First stir fried muted pepper and bok choy. Pushed those aside and added in the spices and then the scallions and then the lamb. It was very doos. Ground some pepper on top before setving.

Wondering how you can measure 2 tablespoons of whole dried chiles.

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Credits

Adapted from Northeast Taste

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