Beef Luc Lac (Vietnamese Shaking Beef)
Tender beef cubes kissed with garlic and black pepper, tossed in a hot wok until the edges char and crackle. Served over crisp lettuce with a bright lime-soy dipping sauce.
- Total time
- 35 min
- Servings
- 2
- Calories
- 520
- Protein
- 52g
Ingredients
- 1 lb beef sirloin or tenderloin
- 4 cloves garlic cloves
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons lime juice (about 2 limes)
- 1.5 teaspoons black pepper
- ½ teaspoon fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 cups fresh lettuce leaves (butter lettuce or romaine)
Instructions
- 1
Pat the beef dry with paper towels so it will brown better, not steam.
- 2
Cut the beef against the grain into 1-inch cubes — look for the lines of muscle fiber running through the meat and cut perpendicular to them.
- 3
Mince the garlic until the pieces are smaller than a grain of rice, about the size of pencil-tip dots.
- 4
Mix 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce, 1.5 tablespoons lime juice, and 0.5 teaspoon fish sauce in a small bowl to make the dipping sauce; set aside.
- 5
Tear or chop the lettuce into 2-inch pieces and arrange on a serving platter.
- 6
Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until it foams and smells nutty, about 30 seconds.
- 7
Add half the beef cubes to the skillet in a single layer and let them sit without moving for 2 minutes so they develop a brown crust.
- 8
Stir the beef once and cook for 1 more minute until the second side browns, then transfer to a clean plate.
- 9
Repeat steps 6–8 with the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and remaining beef cubes.
- 10
Return all the beef to the skillet and reduce heat to medium-high.
- 11
Add the minced garlic and 1.5 teaspoons black pepper, then stir constantly for 30 seconds until the garlic smells strongly fragrant.
- 12
Pour in the remaining 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce and 1.5 tablespoons lime juice, then toss the beef continuously for 30 seconds so the sauce coats everything.
- 13
Slide the beef and any pan juices onto the lettuce-lined platter.
- 14
Drizzle the reserved dipping sauce over the beef and lettuce just before eating.
Tools you’ll need
- cutting board
- sharp chef's knife
- 12-inch skillet
- paper towels
- small bowl
- measuring spoons
- wooden spoon or spatula
- serving platter
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