Knife Skills: Slicing Steak For Stir Fry

when cutting beef first stir-fried the goal is to cut it into even pieces that are thin enough to cook quickly starting with a skirt steak hanger steak flank steak or flat meat begin by trimming off all of the tough silver skin and excess fat with a sharp chef’s knife or boning knife with your knife blade facing outward poke the tip of the knife underneath the fat and cut through to create a flap lift this flap with your free hand and cut under the fat in the opposite direction to completely remove it next align the beef so that the grain is parallel with your knife blade and cut the steak into strips about two to three inches wide then working with one strip at a time and holding your knife at a forty-five to 30 degree angle from the cutting board slice each strip on the bias against the grain in two slices about quarter inch to 1/2 inch thick the easiest way to do this is to hold the cut surface steady with your free hand and slowly pull your knife blade backwards from heel to tip and one smooth even stroke if you’re having trouble doing this try placing the meat in the freezer for about 10 minutes to firm up its structure