Love Chinese food? Then give this a go; Chinese-infused hoisin sauce steak, with tempura sweet chilli king prawns, served with mushroom and chilli egg fried rice.

It was Chinese New Year a couple of weeks ago. And it got me thinking, I really do love Chinese food.

This is a great recipe for a starter (tempura prawns) and main (hoisin steak with egg fried rice) that’s easy to put together. I got the recipe from the chefs at Sweet Mandarin (a Chinese restaurant in Manchester’s Northern Quarter) who hosted an event with Circulon, to welcome in the Chinese New Year!

Sweet Mandarin is run by Lisa and Helen, I met them both and they are some of the nicest people I’ve ever met. The cook up fresh Chinese food in their restaurant which is just past Luck, Lust Liquor and Burn in the NQ on Copperas Street. They also make their own sauces, which are used in this recipe, but if you can’t get hold of those just pick them up at your local supermarket.

So here it is, the recipe for their Chinese-infused hoisin sauce steak, with tempura sweet chilli king prawns, served with mushroom and chilli egg fried rice!

TIP: I made the rice first and kept that warm, then made the steak and did the same whilst I made the tempura prawns as they are best served hot and fresh!

This recipe serves two very hungry people!

I made each element of the dish in a Circulon wok which was gifted to me by Circulon as part of the event. I must say, the wok is incredible, and I am not just saying that!

Have you used anything from Circulon before? I already rate them as a cookware brand and agreed with some foodie friends this week, their stuff is amazing! This wok is so robust, it’s huge, lidded and is ideal for both deep-frying, egg frying and stir-frying.

Hoisin steak and sweet chilli tempura prawns

What you need

for the rump steak stir fry

• 250g rump steak
• half a bottle of Sweet Mandarin hoisin sauce
• a drizzle of toasted sesame oil
• 1 sprig of fresh rosemary
• a good pinch of salt
• 2 tsp Very Lazy ginger, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 7-8 stems of tender stem broccoli, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 6-8 pieces of  baby corn, sliced
• 1 carrot peeled and cut into rounds

for the king prawn tempura with sweet chilli

• 750ml sunflower oil, for deep frying
• 5-6 large king prawns peeled and deveined
• 1 cup of plain flour, sifted
• a large, free-range egg
• 1 cup of ice cold water
• ¼ bottle of Sweet Mandarin Sweet Chilli sauce, to serve
• lemon wedges, to serve

for chestnut mushroom and chilli egg fried rice

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 300g basmati rice, cooked and cooled
• 1 free range egg, beaten
• 250g chestnut mushrooms
• 2 stems of spring onion, finely diced
• a few handfuls frozen peas
• 1 fresh red chilli, diced
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce

What to do

for the rump steak stir fry

1. Place the rump steak into a sealable sandwich bag.
2. Pour in the marinade (Sweet Mandarin Hoisin Sauce, toasted sesame oil and salt)
3. Pick and finely chop 1 sprig of fresh rosemary and then add to the bag.
4. Squeeze the air out of the bag, seal it and spend a few minutes massaging all the flavours into the steak. Leave in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
5. About 30 minutes before you’re ready to cook, remove the steak from the fridge and place in a cool corner of the kitchen to slowly come up to room temperature.
6. Once the meat has reached room temperature, take it out of the bag. Heat a frying pan with vegetable oil and place the marinated steak one side down and seal the steak for 2-3 minutes or longer depending on how cooked you want it to be. Turn the steak over and cook.
7. Rest for 5 minutes and slice into even sized pieces. Set aside.
8. In the wok, heat 1 tbsp oil and stir-fry the garlic and ginger for a minute or so. Next, add the broccoli, baby corn and carrots. Add the rest of the marinade to create a sauce. Add the steak to the wok and mix well. Keep warm until ready to serve.

for the king prawn tempura with sweet chilli

12. Heat the sunflower oil before the tempura batter is ready. Around 375F is the ideal temperature. This can be done in the Circulon wok, or any other large, heavy-based pan or a deep fat fryer.
13. Pat out the king prawns on a paper towel to remove any excess liquid.
14. For the batter mix, sift the plain flour to ensure a light batter. In a separate bowl beat the egg and add in the ice water. Add the sifted flour into the bowl with the egg and water and combine well, whisking lightly with a fork or chopsticks until there are no lumps.
15. Dip the king prawns into the batter and let the excess batter drip off. Drop carefully into the hot oil and cook for 3-4 minutes, until golden in colour and puffed.
16. Remove from the oil and drain on kitchen towel. Sprinkle with sea salt immediately.
17. Serve with Sweet Mandarin Sweet Chilli sauce and lemon wedges.

for chestnut mushroom and chilli egg fried rice

1. Heat the wok over a high heat and add one tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add the beaten egg and scramble for a minute or so.
2. Add in the cooled boiled rice and pat out the grains so the rice warms and separates.
3. Make a space in the centre of the fried rice and add the chestnut mushrooms, peas, spring onions and chillies and cook for 3-4 minutes. Then mix well into the fried rice.
4. Season with light soy sauce and mix and toss well.