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Liang Gua Neu Rou

A stir-fry of shredded beef and bitter gourd flavored with fermented black bean, garlic, and soy sauce.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 21 ingredients
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Why it works: Garlic and sesame match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,000 recipes. Both carry furaneol, which smells caramel, strawberry. The science ↓

Liang Gua Neu Rou

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Wash beef, wipe dry and shred, marinate with seasoning (1) for 10 minutes

  2. Wash bitter gourd and red pepper, remove seeds and shred

  3. Wash fermented black bean, press gently by fingers

Stir-fry the bitter gourd

  1. Heat wok with 4 tbsp oil, stir-fry shredded bitter gourd until deep green

  2. Add fermented black bean and minced garlic, stir-fry

  3. Add seasoning (2) and stir-fry until dry, dish up

Combine and serve

  1. Heat wok again with 2 tbsp oil, stir-fry shredded beef

  2. Add the stir-fried bitter gourd while the beef is almost cooked

  3. Keep stir-frying, add shredded red pepper and sauce

  4. Stir-fry and mix well, dish up and serve

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1211Calories
51 gProtein
45 gFat
149 gCarbs

Counts 12 of 15 ingredients. The other 3 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 12 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Beef100g cooked250
Sesame1 tbsp (14g)120
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Black Bean1/2 cup canned (120g) drained114
Corn1/2 cup kernels (82g)77
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Soy Sauce1 tbsp (15ml)9
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Bitter Gourdnot in our table0
Waternot in our table0
Saucenot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Garlic + sesametop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,000 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  2. Corn + sesametop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together151 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  3. Pepper + garlictop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,090 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Beef + peppertop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together18,971 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  5. Beef + sesametop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together392 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-furfurylthiol (coffee, roasted).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Beef
Main protein that gives the dish its savoury, meaty body.
Bitter gourd
Main vegetable whose bitterness defines the dish and stays crisp-tender when quickly stir-fried.
Fermented black bean
Adds salty, fermented depth that seasons the bitter gourd.
Mashed garlic
Adds pungent aroma that mellows and lightly browns in hot oil.
Red pepper
Adds sweetness, colour and a fresh, crisp bite.

The step that matters

Stir-fry the bitter gourd until deep green. Quick frying over high heat sets the green colour and a crisp-tender bite. Prolonged heat breaks down chlorophyll and softens the gourd, leaving it dull and soggy.

Swap the garlic

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, pepper, sauce, sugar, corn, flour, sesame):

  1. Jalapenofits better
  2. Turmericfits better
  3. Cuminfits better
  4. Garlicthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, pepper, sauce, sugar, corn, flour, sesame. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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