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Velvet the beef: Place steak in a large ziploc bag. Ready to perfect your velveting technique, and sink your teeth into magically tender dishes? Cornstarch is the foundation of Chinese cooking and this magical pantry ingredient is commonly used to thicken soups, stews and sauces. This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. To blanch, add the chicken to a wok filled with boiling water. I recently made velveted beef for my Thai green curry recipe. Arrange in a serving dish, sprinkle with minced chives and coriander. Chemical tenderizer. Directions. Velveting Beef For Stir Fry - TheSuperHealthyFood It also happens to be the most recommended cut of beef we use in our stir-fry recipes. This works mainly because of the egg whites, which are naturally alkaline. It's also done for, stewing beef or other economical beef cuts, Refrigerate for 30 to 40 minutes. Moo Goo Gai Pan: Mushroom and Chicken Stir Fry, Spicy Chicken Stir-fry (Firebird Chicken), Chicken and Thai Basil Stir-Fry in 15 Minutes. Cook the meat according . Velveting is a Chinese method of marinating meat in a cornstarch-based . Just like in stir fries made by your favourite Chinese restaurant! Remember to slice across the grain, especially if using chicken breast. Tenderising timediffers for different cuts of beef. You can try mechanical or heat methods. but they dont all use the same method. Young also suggests using a dry wok skimmer or slotted metal spoon to carefully transfer the marinated ingredients without splashing. The other name for it is "velveting beef". Heat the large wok/pan over medium-high heat. The velveting technique is very easy and gives amazing results. Its soft and smooth. Next, remove the meat from the wok using a slotted spoon and reserve it in a dish. That said, we think searing beef imparts more flavor than the jau yau deep-frying method. We were surprised to find that samples that were . Tap here to receive our FREE top 25 recipe book! You can have it all done from start to finish in about 40 minutes. Stir-fry until the chicken has turned opaque, and remove from the wok. Add beef and spread out, leave for 1 minute until browned. With just one extra step, Im my own favorite take-out joint. Cooking advice that works. Velveting Chicken: Why It's Important & How To Do It Were Sarah, Kaitlin, Judy, and Bill a family of four cooks sharing our home-cooked and restaurant-style recipes. If using shrimp or scallop, make sure to shake out the water before combining it with any egg white-cornstarch mixture. When it turns opaque, cook for an additional 10 seconds (the chicken will be cooked 80% through). Cook for one minute or until the meat just turns opaque but is not cooked through. A Guide to the Velveting Technique - Kikkoman UK In that time, most of the liquid will be absorbed into the chicken. The meat was so tender, silky, and smooth. When the sauce starts bubbling, add broccoli. Baking soda is a powerful tenderizer, but if too much is added, it can add an off-taste to the beef, which is why it is rinsed off. All restaurants (and most home cooks) velvet their chicken before making stir-fries, fried rice, etc. For the best tender beef, marinate the meat with corn starch and baking soda along with other ingredients. To give your velveted meat an. How to Velvet Beef or Chicken for Chinese Stir Fry - Dish Ditty The meat is then lightly cooked on the outside before cooking it all the way through. Slow Cooker Roast Beef 2. Shake off then pat away excess water (doesn't need to be 100% dry). Then, remove from the wok. We've got all the tools, instructions and advice you need. Absolutely love that velveting tip, I used rump steak to make your chow mein and it was fantastic. Master this marinating technique, and youll successfully prepare Chinese stir-fry dishes at home. If you blanch meat in water, Young suggests having a colander ready in the sink, drain the pieces in the colander, and thoroughly shaking out any water before stir frying. If peanut oil is unavailable, award-winning cookbook author Grace Young suggests using oil with higher smoke points like grapeseed, avocado, rice bran, safflower or vegetable oil. (See Note 1 for different cuts). Join our newsletter to get new recipe updates, a free copy of our The Best Filipino Dinners Cookbook, exclusive meal plans, and more. The baking soda is too strong and will over tenderise the outside before the inside is tenderised. Other tenderising methods include marinating in a cornflour/cornstarch sludge then frying in oil before using in the stir fry, chemical tenderisers and egg white marinates. Starbucks Is Putting Olive Oil in Its Drinks Is This the Next Revolution in Coffee? The missing ingredient that made nearly any dish sing? Place the dried meat in a bowl and pour the velveting mixture on top. (If you can't find Shaoxing wine in a local Asian market, dry sherry or a rice wine like sake make decent substitutes.). Ive personally found that even just marinating the protein without completing this extra step makes a huge difference. I have been velveting beef since I learned to make stroganoff. In fact, if you put your ear very close to the beef, youll hear faint fizzing thats the baking soda at work! MARINATE: Add the thinly sliced beef, soy sauce, 1 tablespoon water, cornstarch, baking soda, white pepper, and garlic powder to a bowl and stir to combine.Set aside for at least 15 minutes and ideally, 1-2 hours works best to tenderize the meat. Fill a wok or a large pot with water. I feel there are merits to having both moist hydrated beef or a drier beef for some stir-fry dishes. Weve seen other sources on the Internet suggest adding egg white to velveting marinades. I started velveting my meat after years of horribly chewy and tough stir fries and frankly was amazed at the difference it made. While oil-blanching can require a lot of oil, you can also blanch meat in water. Add oyster sauce and/or soy sauce to give your beef an extra flavor boost. Next, add the noodles and pour the sauce over the noodles. It has avelvety texture. ~ Step 3. Because were using thin slices of beef here and its been tenderised, we dont need to marinate for long. How do you make fried chicken skin crispy like Jolibee Chicken Joy? Submit your question or comment below. Oil velveting is a common practice Chinese restaurants use as a first cooking step. Let stand 1-2 hours. Thanks for the tips, Give it a try, Raymund, the extra step will make a big difference in your stir-fries . Top 45 How To Tenderize Overcooked Beef Recipes Korean cuisine is known for its impressive spreads of banchan a.k.a. I do this with my 12-inch butcher knife. 5 stars for sure! My stir fry turned out awesome because of this tip. Nobody really knows what causes it, but if youve ever had a stringy or tough chicken breast, you may have experienced it. Learn how to prepare beef for stir-fry just like professional chefs do in Chinese restaurant kitchens. The equivalent Chinese phrase, zu yu () in Mandarin or jau yau in Cantonese, means passing through oil. It essentially refers to deep-frying. The plain tenderised beef isnt flavoured, so it can be used forany recipe calling for strips of beef that are cooked quickly, such as Beef Stroganoff. Pat your boneless meat dry, and lay it on a cutting surface. When using cornstarch with other ingredients, stir it well until its fully dissolved, and no clumps are visible. At home, I use a liquid to cornstarch ratio of 2:1, with 1 Tbsp. The pieces of meat are soaked for about 30 minutes or left in the refrigerator for 30 to 35 minutes. Your email address will not be published. This is the only beef hes getting today . This is what tenderizes the meat, especially cheaper, tougher cuts. Place your beef in the mixture and coat evenly. Delicate fish can benefit from a little extra oil to make sure the tender pieces of fish arent too dry, risking breakage in the wok.. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories, To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. It wasnt until college that I connected the dots between family dinners and the cooking technique of American Chinese cuisine I witnessed during my routine runs to the campus Panda Express. Cook the egg noodles separately on the stovetop, Before serving, stir in the noodles and a slurry of sour cream, cornstarch, and 1 cup of hot broth from the pot. Toss with fingers to coat as evenly as possible. Read Also: Can Cats Eat Corn Husks Try and get that soda powder all over the thinly-sliced beef by rubbing it in. Bring water and oil to a boil in a pot over high heat. Velveted meat tastes best with preparations that are heavy on sauce and flavor. Save the egg yolk for breakfast tomorrow morning. But if you've ever tried to replicate any of your favorite takeout in the kitchen, you've likely noticed that the high heat required for most recipes thoroughly dries out the meat that you're trying to cook. Also used for chicken, its a simple, highlyeffective technique using baking soda that transforms economical beef so its incredibly tender in stir friesand stir fried noodles. Dish out and set aside. In a colander, drain chicken. One teaspoon of baking soda is enough for about 250 grams of meat. Read More. This method, known as oil-blanching, ensures ingredients dont clump together and stick to the wok when stir-frying. Subscribe for the latest updates on new recipes, and get started with our family's Top 25 Recipe eBook! Popular in Indian kitchens, masala dabbas are brilliant spice storage containers, but also so much more. Before slicing them, I put them into the walk-in freezer until they were partially frozenfirm but not solid. And to do this, you can start by placing the beef in a mixture of cornstarch, egg whites, and seasoning. In a bowl, combine egg white, Chinese wine, oil, cornstarch and salt. Since I am using your recipes and tricks since 2 years, everybody telling me, I am a magnificent cook. First, slice your chicken into 1 to 2 inch pieces, about inch thick. Its a quick and easy method that any home cook can do, any night of the week. Chuck steak is also more economical than flank steak. Besides tenderizing the meat, velveting also helps form a coating that promotes even browning and helps the sauce to adhere to the meat. Pictured below is the marinated beef before cooking. By now, you should be asking about the science behind it. When it starts to smoke lightly, add a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil to coat the surface of the wok. This step tenderizes (baking soda) and hydrates (water) the beef. Learn how to velvet chicken for stir-fry to get tender, juicy pieces of chicken just like the restaurants! See how the knife is positioned where it will cut the beef against the grain? Mix everything well, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to one hour to allow time for the cornstarch to transform into a thin gelatinous layer. There are a few methods, but this is the easiest way: Sprinkle 3/4 tsp baking soda (bi-carbonate soda) on 250g / 8oz sliced economical beef cuts. Even 10 minutes will suffice. So if a recipe doesnt include blanching, its often because it wont make or break a dish. Fill a wok or a large pot with water. Factors such as brands purchased, natural variations in fresh ingredients, etc. 2 Cover and soak the meat for at least 15 minutes in the solution. In Chinese stir-fry cooking, the way ingredients are cut should be consistent with each other. Beef can be marinated or seasoned before cooking, stir fried or deep fried, and it will be soft and tender, "velvet" like. Thats the whole point, but it can only be done if the meat is thinly sliced. Pro tip: Alternatively, you can use red wine vinegar to replace the soy sauce in the mixture. In most cases, we prefer to sear the meat in a hot wok, since having a wok full of oil at home is simply not practical. How to Velvet Chicken, Pork, and Fish for Stir Fries: An Introduction Give it a gentle shake to combine. Everybody told me, I am a good cook. Looking for more authentic recipes? So, I thought it would be great if I could share this hack with you. Velveting is basically a method that coats any type of meat slices (beef, pork, or chicken) in a thin layer of starch, and then quickly flash fried to bring out the gelatinous texture of cooked starch. Drain. Other ingredients, like Shaoxing wine or sesame oil, may also be layered in. Water-blanching is recommended for home cooks as Young, quoted from her cookbook Stir-Frying to the Skys Edge, says it is less complicated, reduces the amount of oil necessary for stir-frying and results in dishes that taste less fatty. Your return on that investment just isnt worth the trouble. The blanching, or flash-frying, is another step that enforces the barrier; the outside of the meat cooks so quickly that it seals the juiciness of the chicken. Mix and work it into the meat before marinating. Ad Choices. Note: Its thrice fried pork so you really have to drain the excess oil very well to not end up with an oily mess. Thanks Nagi But its not even steaks range from economical to high quality. Ma suggests making the slurry first separately, then adding that to the meat and making sure its thoroughly incorporated. fwiw- (some styles of velveting make use of altering the PH of the protein to actually tenderize, they use techniques that raise the ph (reduce acidity) - usually egg whites, cornstarch, water and baking soda) take note that different proteins react differently. Any excess moisture will create extra spattering from the hot oil when pieces are added to the wok, in addition to turning your stir-fry into a braise, as quoted in her cookbook. I emailed it to myself and I'm going to print it from there. Proceed with stir fry recipe. Set aside for 5-10 minutes. While we do our best to provide nutritional information as a general guideline to our readers, we are not certified nutritionists, and the values provided should be considered estimates. How To Make Chinese Restaurant Style Beef and Chicken! - Not Quite Nigella Bon Apptit may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. 2 teaspoons cornstarch 2 teaspoons vegetable oil Instructions First, slice your chicken into 1 to 2 inch pieces, about inch thick. Once coated in cornstarch, slices of pork became incredibly tender when dunked into a steaming hot misua with sliced patola and vermicelli. Beef And Mushroom Stir-Fry - Rasa Malaysia Until recently, I only used mechanical and thermal methods to tenderize my flank steak beef. If the process used by Chinese restaurants to tenderize beef described above sounds a bit like a hassle, you can still tenderize beef using a shortcut. In a pot over high heat, combine about 2-inch deep of water and 1 tablespoon of oil. Learn how your comment data is processed. Bring water back to a gentle simmer and once it's barely bubbling, continue to cook chicken for about 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Sesame oil or extra virgin olive oil, for instance, is not recommended because they tend to have lower smoke points. Make each slice 1/4 thickeach piece will be tender and bite-sized. Then cook over high heat for 2-3 minutes. However, I wouldnt advise that you use chopped beef for this preparation. Thanks for the tip . Rose from modest beginnings as a Burger King sandwich assembler to Holiday Inn busboy and line cook, to cooking at the family's Chinese restaurant, while also learning the finer points of Cantonese cooking from his immigrant parents. This worked beautifully. How to Velvet Chicken for Stir-fry - The Woks of Life Let us know in the comments if you have any questions! Mix the meat with the potato starch, the previously beaten egg, 2 tablespoons of chicken broth, sugar, salt, and pepper. The beef will be cooked through while cooking with the mushrooms and sauce in the last few minutes. Tenderizing your beef is the first step of the traditional process of velveting beef practices by Chinese chefs. * It sounds counterintuitive to tenderise steaks because one would assume if beef is sold labelled as steaks, that indicates theyre good for quick cooking (eg grilling) so it should be good for stir fries. 2. Step 1: Get mixing In a small bowl, beat the egg white. 2 Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat until hot. Usually, add cornstarch and beaten egg and whisk with baking soda powder to tenderize the beef. Tenderise beef for stir fries (Velveting Beef) | RecipeTin Eats Add cornstarch and oil to give the meat a velvety texture. Its time to share some Chinese restaurant secrets on how to tenderize beef. Andit stays tendereven if you overcook the beef! The chicken is then added to the wok at the end for a short saut with the prepared sauce before being served. Additional seasonings are optional and vary from recipe to recipe. If youre unsure for your cut of beef, go for 35 minutes. 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Long strands of noodles like you have in Beef Lo Mein require beef to be cut into similar long thin strips. Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates. But does this method really work? Add 1 tbsp of stir-fry sauce mixture and follow with garlic and onions. Sorry if this is a silly question. Velveting is a critical Chinese cooking technique. I feel like I just got a peek at the da Vinci code! When slicing the flank steak into small pieces, slice against the grain (perpendicular to the long lines of muscle). High Temperature Eye-of-Round Roast R. Author: Mary Claire Lagroue Published: Dec 16, 2019 Estimated Reading Time: 3 mins . Let stand 1-2 hours. For shrimp, you can velvet it unless they are super fresh. will change the nutritional information in any recipe. Have a question? This process tears all the fibers apart, and when you thaw it out and stir-fry it, its incredibly tender. So, their meat was only consumed when the animal was too old to do its job. You may follow steps 5-8 of the previous recipe to stir-fry your velveted beef. It can be marinated with wet or dry seasonings, or cooked plain. For beef, add a 1/4-teaspoon of baking soda for tenderizing. In a cold wok, add chopped garlic and a small amount of oil. In that time, most of the liquid will be absorbed into the chicken. Ever notice how the beef at Chinese restaurants is so incredibly tender, and how your stir fries at home are just never the same? document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Remember to slice across the grain, especially if using chicken breast. 626628916 Beef Bourguignon in a white soup bowl on black . Although I dont think its relatable enough or a perfect analogy to describe velvet beef, that should give you an idea about what were trying to do. Here are a few recipes I use this method: Did you make this? Ill try the quantities in your recipe as Im cheating with the red/white wine and probably using too much cornflour (?). Here youll find hundreds of delicious Filipino and Asian recipes. (Velveting chicken) . Velveting does more than tenderize your glistening orange chickenit creates an even protective coating that browns meat more evenly, seals in its juices, and improves overall sauce adhesion. How to Prepare Beef for Stir-fry - The Woks of Life In most cases you want to preserve their fresh taste and natural texture, says Leung. You can find me either in my kitchen (or someone else's) or at a big outdoor barbecue surrounded by friends and family. Exercise care when adding or removing ingredients to and from the hot liquid. Wen agrees and says, I would recommend mixing all the marinade ingredients together very well before adding in your meat. Thanks Nagi. When Daddy Lau (as he is affectionately called) cooks Kung Pao Chicken, for instance, he stir-fries the protein until its 80 to 90 percent cooked, then scoops it out of the wok and sets it aside. Heres the general rule of thumb Ive come up with based on all the beef Ive tried: Chuck beef, gravy beef, oyster beef and other traditional stewing beef 30 minutes, Economical steak cuts (eg. Notify me via e-mail if anyone answers my comment. Bill is the dad of The Woks of Life family. Velveting Meat: The Best-Kept Chinese Restaurant Secret Velveting meat is used for making tender beef in Chinese stir-fry recipes. Lastly, adding the chicken a few minutes before the dish is complete allows the meat to heat up to the same temperature as the rest of the meal without prolonged exposure to more heat (which will create a loss of moisture and a tougher texture). After marinating, the chicken is tossed into a wok and flash-fried with oil over high heat. Start by beating the egg in a bowl and lay it aside. I am proud to say that your genealogy has been the sole tutorial for my Asian-inspired culinary adventures for years; probably since you began. The first step is to add a good amount of baking soda to the beefabout 1 rounded teaspoon per pound (450g). Add chicken and marinate in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. soy sauce, and 1 Tbsp. Allow it to sit for at least 20 minutes (longer if you have time). Serve immediately. However, Im fine with that because stir fries always have great sauces! These methods are foolproof, so enjoy every preparation, cooking step, and, of course, the tasting. You can use any high quality (expensive) steak in stir fries without tenderising (which is what fine dining Asian restaurants do). If not, skip down to the next section. Whisk together egg white, vinegar, cornstarch, and salt in a large bowl until smooth. Use your hands to stir up the beef during the rinsing process. For this method, bring the water to a boil on high heat, add one tablespoon of peanut or vegetable oil, reduce the heat to low and when the water is barely simmering, carefully add the meat and gently stir so the pieces dont clump together. This technique is known as velveting, because meats marinated with cornstarch have a velvety smooth texture on the outside and retain moisture on the inside. Thank you so much for sharing. Butdont limit yourself to just Chinese recipes! Just season the ribs with salt and pepper, pour the cream and vanilla and let it sit for about an hour. Here are tips to pulling off your own well-balanced, ever-changing assortment. Because this is a Chinese restaurant method, Im sharing this with stir frieslike Beef and Broccoliand stir fried noodles in mind. The fibres are softened so you get less meaty texture, which is why I only use this technique to tenderise strips of meat and not cubes or steaks which would be a bit too eerie! Velveting beef: How to tenderise beef for stir-fries - news Time and again, my worldwide web pursuits for solid recipes that I know my family will eat has landed me back here.. It was a hit! If done well, youll achieve that flank steak beef texture found in Chinese restaurants. Others familiar with Chinese cooking styles use only egg white, corn starch, and Chinese (HaoSing) wine for the non-soda velveting method. Thinly slice about 250 grams of beef. Mix everything well, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to one hour to allow time for the cornstarch to transform into a thin gelatinous layer. Chen says cornstarch helps the meat retain moisture while it cooks, thus yielding a silkier texture. Increase the marinating time for your beef by at least 15 minutes. The cornstarch and oil gives the beef its velvety smooth texture, protecting the meat during cooking. In most cases, good quality chicken is already tender, which is why we dont recommend adding any baking soda. More Recipes: 1. I've used chicken as my primary example because I prefer to cook with chicken: the velveting technique works wonders with chicken breasts. The baking soda method is the simplest for every day purposes and just as effectivewhich is why its the method I use. Quick Beef and Broccoli Noodles - Khin's Kitchen Drain. Velveting is a Chinese cooking technique commonly used in stir-frying. My Ground Beef Smells Like Eggs | Can I Still Eat It? When it starts to smoke lightly, add a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil to coat the surface of the wok. Keep the oil in the wok. Various online calculators also provide different results, depending on their sources.