This dish is a Big Success in my book, and I can almost guarantee that it will be the finest beef noodle soup you’ve ever had!

My friends and family know that I’m not a fan of complicated recipes. This braised beef noodle soup dish is similar to my Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, which many of you have already made!

The dried spices are the most significant difference between this recipe and the previous one, and in this case, aromatics take center stage.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 small pieces of Chinese cinnamon
• 2 black cardamom pods
• ½ tablespoon fennel seeds
• 4 star anise pods
• 10 cloves
• 1 dried tangerine peel
• 6 bay leaves
• ½ tablespoon whole white peppercorns
• 4 slices licorice root
• 2 pieces sand ginger
• 10 pieces dried amomum white cardamom
• 3 pounds of beef chuck (large chunks)
• 16 cups of water
• 5 slices of ginger
• 3 tbsp. of oil
• 15g of rock sugar
• 5 scallions (separate the white parts amd green parts)
• 1 whole head of garlic
• 1 pound of daikon
• ¼ cup of Shaoxing wine
• 1 tbsp. of dark soy sauce
• ¼ cup of light soy sauce
• Salt (to taste)
• Noodle (base on your preference)
• Leafy vegetables of your choice (spinach, romaine lettuce, choy sum, and bok choy are all good)
• Handful of chopped cilantro

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Use cheesecloth or disposable/refillable tea filter bags to first contain the aromatics. The cinnamon, black cardamom, fennel seeds, star anise, cloves, tangerine peel, bay leaves, white peppercorns, licorice slices, sand ginger, and amomum white cardamon are all there. Phew. In my perspective, it’s a no-brainer that this will be worthwhile. You can put your faith in me.
2. Any leftover dirt can be removed by rinsing the meat under cold running water. Add 16 cups of water, the ginger, and the beef to a soup pot. You’ll know it’s ready when you see some foam on the surface of the water. Remove the foam by using a skimming motion. You don’t want your soup to get hazy because of the beef’s contaminants. Fish out any meat parts that may have gotten stuck, then filter the broth through a fine-mesh strainer into a heat-resistant dish or other container. Set aside with the slices of ginger.
3. Oil should be heated in a big, thick-bottomed soup pot. Add the scallion whites, garlic, and rock sugar. Scallions should be lightly browned after cooking for a few minutes. Stir in the steak and increase the heat to high.
4. Stirring once or twice during the five-minute cooking period is enough. Afterwards, add the Shaoxing wine, the dark soy sauce, and the light soy sauce to the beef and mix thoroughly to coat the meat.
5. Once you’ve finished cooking the beef and removing it from the broth, combine the aromatics with the daikon and the broth and ginger bits you saved. As soon as you’ve brought the ingredients to a boil, lower the heat to medium. Simmer for an hour and a half. The broth should be simmering steadily, with water moving around in the saucepan, but it should not be boiling.
6. For a another hour, turn off the heat and leave the lid on. Your soup base is now complete. Before serving, reheat, remove the aromatics, and season with salt to taste. Salting the beef too early will cause it to dry out.
7. Drain and place the noodles in a large serving bowl after they have been cooked according to package directions. Add a few handfuls of your favorite leafy greens to the noodle water and cook them for a few minutes. Ladle steak and soup on top of each other, and then serve. The chopped green sections of the scallions and some chopped cilantro should be sprinkled on top of the pizza (optional). Add a teaspoon of chile oil if you can’t stand the heat any longer. Wink! Wink!
8. Enjoy!