Beef and Broccoli

Whisk together baking soda, 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, and 1 teaspoon sugar in a medium bowl. Add steak strips, and toss to coat. Set aside at room temperature, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.Broccoli can be trimmed and steamed up to three days ahead. Leftovers keep well in the fridge for up to three days. Don’t marinate (velvet) the beef for more than one hour; any longer and it may turn mealy.

Meanwhile, whisk together remaining 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine, 2 teaspoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon cornstarch, and 1 teaspoon sugar in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wok or large cast iron skillet over high until just smoking. Add broccoli; cook, stirring constantly, until starting to turn bright green, about 30 seconds. Add remaining 1/3 cup water; cover and reduce heat to medium. Steam broccoli until tender-crisp, about 3 minutes; transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

Return wok or skillet to high heat, allowing any excess water to evaporate, if necessary. Once dry, add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to wok, and swirl to coat; reduce heat to medium-high. Using tongs or a slotted spoon, add half of steak strips from marinade to wok, allowing excess marinade to drip off; cook, undisturbed, until starting to turn brown, about 1 minute. Flip steak strips, and cook until mostly browned, about 1 minute more. Push browned steak strips to the side of wok, and repeat cooking process with remaining strips. (Discard remaining marinade.) Push all steak strips to the sides of wok. Add scallions, ginger, and garlic to empty part of wok; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 15 to 20 seconds. Stir steak strips into mixture; return broccoli to wok, and toss to combine. Whisk oyster sauce mixture until combined; add to wok, and cook, stirring constantly, until sauce is thickened and evenly distributed, about 30 seconds. Transfer Beef and Broccoli to a platter, and drizzle with sesame oil. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, and serve with rice.