Beef and broccoli stir fry

Cut the flank into three strips two and a half inches wide, turn one 90 degrees and slice it thinly on a bias into pieces about one inch tall, an eighth of an inch thick and two inches wide.

Move the sliced beef to the sink and rinse it, massaging it to break down some of the protein structure — the first step of velveting.

Marinate the beef with the soy sauce, Chinese cooking wine, sesame oil, sugar, cornstarch and baking soda, massaging it thoroughly.

Set the beef aside five to 10 minutes.

Cut the broccolini into pieces no larger than one and a half to two inches on the floret side and half an inch on the stem side.

Slice a quarter of a large white onion thinly.

Zest the unpeeled ginger and grate five cloves of garlic on a microplane.

Combine the sugar, soy sauce, oyster sauce and Shaoxing wine for the stir-fry sauce.

Stir a teaspoon of cornstarch into two to three tablespoons of water as a standalone slurry, so the thickening can be throttled after the sauce is in the pan.

Set the wok over high heat on the most powerful burner and turn on the hood vent; cook once it is above 550F.

Add about a tablespoon of high smoke point oil around the edge of the wok, add half the marinated beef to the centre and toss aggressively; cook 60 to 90 seconds, tossing every 20 to 30 seconds, until browned and 80 to 90 percent cooked, then move it to a bowl.

Repeat with oil and the second half of the beef and move it to the same bowl.

Deglaze the wok with a small splash of water, wipe it out with a damp paper towel and give it 30 seconds to come back up to heat.

Add another rough tablespoon of oil around the edges, then half the broccolini and half the onions; shake them down to coat and cook until charred at the edges with a snappy tenderness, then move them to the bowl.

Add oil and the second half of the broccoli and onions, fry 60 to 90 seconds, then add the garlic and ginger and toss quickly — finely grated aromatics burn in about 20 seconds in a 600 degree pan.

Return all the stir-fried beef and vegetables, which bring moisture to deglaze the pan, and fold and toss 15 to 20 seconds.

Pour the stir-fry sauce around the edges of the wok for instantaneous evaporation and caramelization.

Add two to three tablespoons, about 30 grams, of the cornstarch slurry, keeping the rest back in case it looks thin.

Toss and fold until the sauce is reduced, thickened and glazing the meat and vegetables.