Chinese Black Bean Garlic Sauce

Black Bean Garlic is a classic Cantonese flavor profile, and is famously available in bottled form courtesy Lee Kum Kee. We're not the biggest fans of the bottle though - definitely make this at home if at all possible.

0:00 - Why Homemade Black Bean Garlic Sauce is Better
1:15 - Making the Sauce
2:52 - How to Make Garlic Black Bean Beef
5:35 - How to Store
5:55 - How to Prep as a Dip or Spread
6:53 - Does Lee Kum Kee Make Good Sauces?

BLACK BEAN GARLIC SAUCE

Sourcing notes:

Amazon made a fool out of me - currently their fermented black soybeans are out of stock. Maybe last time I linked this product we gave them the hug of death. Regardless, just in case it's in stock in the future:

And of course, if you're America-based, Weee! is the best choice price-wise and they do carry the fermented black soybeans - the same brand we used in the video:

The aged 'tangerine' peel is available both on Amazon and Weee:

Currently Amazon only has the strips in stock. These can be used in the same way, although it's a little more annoying to scrape off the pith.

Both of these ingredients should be Chinese supermarket available.

Ingredients:

This should make enough for about five stir fries worth.

* Dried 'Tangerine' Peel, Chenpi (陈皮), 3g or about three pieces
* Garlic, one head, ~70g
* Salt, 1 tsp
* Fermented black soybeans, Douchi (豆豉), 2 tbsp, ~15g
* Shallots (干葱), 2, ~130g
* Sugar, 3 tbsp
* Chicken bouillon powder (鸡粉), 1 tsp -or- MSG (味精), 1/2 tsp
* Oyster sauce (蚝油), 2 tbsp
* Soy sauce (生抽), 1 tbsp

Process:

Soak the dried 'tangerine' peel for one hour until soft. Scrape off the bitter white pith (thoroughly!), and finely mince.

Pound together all the ingredients except for the sauces, then once pasty, mix in said sauces.

If using this sauce as a dip or a spread (i.e. not as a base for a stir fry), cook the sauce first. Tablespoon or so of oil, medium flame, cook the sauce until the oil separates, ~2 minutes. Swirl in a tablespoon of liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing wine, then add in 1/4 cup of water. Swap the flame to high, reduce until the water is mostly gone, ~8 minutes.

BLACK BEAN GARLIC BEEF

* Beef loin, 200g
* Marinade for the beef: Kansui (枧水) -or- sodium carbonate -or- baking soda, 1/4 tsp; salt, 1/2 tsp; sugar, 1 tsp; cornstarch (生粉), 1 tsp; liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing wine (料酒/绍酒), 1 tsp; soy sauce (生抽), 1/2 tsp; dark soy sauce (老抽), 1/2 tsp; black pepper powder, 1/4 tsp; oyster sauce (蚝油), 1 tsp; water, 2 tbsp; oil, ~1 tsp to coat
* Ginger, 1/2 inch, sliced
* Scallions, 3, white and green parts separated, cut into ~2 inch sections
* Green mild chili, half a chili, cut into diamonds (bell pepper is also ok, or just use all red/green)
* Red mild chili, half a chili, cut into diamonds (bell pepper is also ok, or just use all red/green)
* Oil, ~1/3 cup, for frying (you could also get away with ~1/4 cup)
* Sauce from above, 2.5 tbsp
* Liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing wine, ~1 tbsp. For stir frying
* Dark soy sauce (老抽), ~1/2 tsp. For stir frying
* Slurry of 1 tsp cornstarch (生粉) mixed with an equal amount of water

Thinly slice the beef into ~2mm sheets against the grain. Mix with the marinade and set aside.

In a wok or pot, heat the oil up until bubbles are rapidly forming around a pair of chopsticks, ~180C, and quickly fry the beef over a high flame. ~45 seconds, until 90% cooked. Remove, dipping over a strainer over the aromatics.

Fry the black pepper sauce in ~2 tbsp oil over a medium low flame, and once the oil's separated, up the flame to high. Swirl in the wine. Add the beef and the aromatics, fry over high for ~30 seconds, then mix in the dark soy sauce. Add the slurry. Once thickened, add in the green parts of the scallion.

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Outro Music: คิดถึงคุณจัง by ธานินทร์ อินทรเทพ

[ChineseCookingDemystified]

Hey guys, a few notes:


2. Using this to top over steamed stuff is another good idea. For steamed dishes, you can use either the cooked or the uncooked sauce. Any sort of root vegetable would be awesome – taro, sweet potato, Chinese yam, jicama, winter melon – just toss the vegetables (let’s say… 300g?) with ~1 tbsp of oil and ~1/8 tsp salt, top with that ~2.5 tbsp of the black bean garlic sauce and steam. You can also do the same move with some marinated pork ribs, or tofu, or reconstituted wide rice noodles.

3. The cooked sauce is also awesome mixed into noodles.

4. We combined the soy sauce/oyster sauce/sugar mixture into the ‘black bean sauce’ mostly for ease of use – a more common sight would be to have the black bean/aromatics pounded separately, and hit a stir fry with soy sauce/oyster sauce/sugar later in the process. If you feel strongly on the subject, absolutely feel free to separate the sauces (as we’ve done on this channel in the past). We just wanted to have the sauce itself hit a similar place as the LKK, which is why we added that all in.

5. If you’re *solely* looking to turn this sauce into a spread, I’d suggest halving or even cutting out the salt. If you’re looking to really pile this onto, say, a burger… the sauce as is *can* get a little salty if you’re overly aggressive with the quantity.

6. Hat tip to Internet Shaquille for upping my stovetop burger. I used to fry the burger in some oil, turn my kitchen into a greasy warzone. The technique of using a non-stick pan together with some sort of weight (I used a metal bowl with a bit of water in it) is awesome. So much cleaner.

That’s all I can think of for now. Might edit this with a bit more in a bit.

[TheWhiteDragon]

Well it's downright criminal how long it's taken me to figure out how easy this stuff is to make. Definitely going on the to-do list

[blackcatiswatchingyou]

My partner was diagnosed with celiac disease which makes cooking, and especially Chinese cooking tricky. I can easily find tamari as a soy sauce substitute and more common gluten-free sauces like oyster and hoisin online. Some I have not been able to source like Chu Hou paste and Black Bean Garlic. This format of a "sauce" series is great!!

[Barman]

I JUST got done talking to my sister about how great Black Bean Sauce (from the jar) is... now I know what I'm gonna be making this weekend

[diamdante]

I've never had a sauce so good it turns a dog into a cat, but I guess I'm going to tonight!!

[AlucardXIX]

Being more of a cat person, I like the addition of the meows

[jomercer]

The mandarin orange fragrance really comes through in the homemade sauce! I dry all the peels from the mandarin oranges we eat in season during the winter.

I freeze aliquots of all sorts of perishable liquid ingredients in ice cube trays

Thanks for including weights in your recipes. It took 2.5 heads of golf-ball size garlic and 3 mini shallots to come up to the amounts you indicated in the sauce recipe. I'm always so envious of the beautiful produce youtubers show--they wave about a bunch of cilantro that looks as if it were a shrub pulled from the garden, compared to the limp, yellowing 3/4" thick bunch available in my local supermarkets.

[farajaraf]

I just took a break at work and nothing could have made me happier than this video

[Johnharwell]

I’ve always been averse to ordering black bean sauce dishes because I have an aversion to black beans in general. Good to know that it’s an entirely different product. Gotta love ambiguous translations.

[zameshtan]

I'm definitely going to give this a try... We use the LKK black bean and garlic sauce quite a bit, but were always kinda miffed at the garlic powder smell it has.

[williamaitken]

I get "X protein with black beans" at my local Chinese take out place all the time because I love the deep flavor. This is so easy and uses a lot of stuff I already have in my pantry (thanks to your channel for having me purchase douchi and dried tangerine peel previously). So I'll definitely be making this in the future! Thanks!

[ninjalemurdude]

My only problem with the jarred stuff from Lee Kum Kee is the saltiness. Same with their Chiu Chow chili oil (which I honestly like even more than chili crisp). I know it's for preservation reasons, and the way they can last practically forever in the fridge is great, but you really can't use that much of it without making the dish too salty.

[cecinepasunme]

I LOVE fried dace w black beans, and I love nibbling on fermented black beans when presented to me in a dish but for years now, I couldn't describe why I love the taste of black beans so much. "Chocolatey depth" sums up exactly what I've been thinking but couldn't articulate - thank you!

[ThePhiphler]

It's amazing how much your new place looks like your old place.

[davidhalldurham]

I had no idea this was so easy to make. I'm heading off to my Asian supermarket now for the ingredients. Thank you, guys.

[RovingPunster]

Except for the orange peel, my version is surprisingly similar. I use a bit more black bean (which I soak in shao xing before mashing) and more oyster sauce, and instead of white sugar I use a homemade jaggery syrup. I also like the combo of chicken base (knorr 095 is good) and a little tamari & sesame oil to round things out. Since I usually make a 32oz wideboy jar, I usually sweat some chiffonaded birdeye chilies and a little crumbled dry red chili for some kick with the rest of the ingredients (my sauce is cooked before jarring), and a little binder to prevent it from separating (corn starch and a little gelatin and/or xanthan gum).

[cancel]

My mouth waters and I get hungry just listening to you and watching this wonderful video. For sure gotta make this.

[keny]

that black bean sauce compound butter idea sounds delicious

[jonathansturm]

Nice one! I’ve been making my own for time out of mind. It’s not just Amazon who run out of douchi so I usually purchase two bags and then start hunting for more when the first bag runs out. They seem to keep well in a cool, dark cupboard. Here in Hobart, Tasmania we have several sources. It’s hard to imagine life without douchi; they’re almost as essential as soy sauce!

[ChrisStargazer]

This would make a fantastic Christmas gift for all your foodiefriends.