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Cumin Beef is such a super flavorful dish – marinated beef stir fried with onions, scallions, garlic, and cumin. Here’s how to easily cook this delicious dish at home!

What is cumin beef?

Cumin Beef is a stir fry with slices of beef with cumin and chili. Often times cooked with scallions, onions, chili pepper, chili powder, and Sichuan peppercorn.

Cumin beef origin

Traditionally this dish is made with lamb – Cumin Lamb! However, you can also cook this dish with beef.

I almost always order Cumin Lamb in Sichuan restaurants, and so I was surprised when I first found out that this dish is actually not from Sichuan!

It originates from the Uyghurs community. Uyghurs are a Turkic-speaking minority ethnic group that mostly reside in Xin Jiang, which is Northwest China.

Tasty food spreads, and so this flavorful dish is served in many Uyghur restaurants in Sichuan. Over time, it became a very popular dish in Sichuan also.

So that’s why you will find Cumin Lamb in almost every Sichuan restaurant (and lots of Chinese restaurants) here in the states!

How to make cumin beef?

First gather your ingredients:

• 3 tbsp cooking oil (separated to 1 tbsp and 2 tbsp)
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 lb boneless beef, sliced thinly (if you ever go to Asian supermarkets and see the Hot Pot section, they have meat prepared like this already)
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 2 tbsp ground cumin (separated 1 tbsp and 2 tbsp)
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 2 scallions, chopped 1 inch length
• 4 to 8 dried red chili pepper (optional)
• Salt, to taste

In a large mixing bowl, mix cornstarch, 1 tbsp cooking oil, and soy sauce, and add sliced beef to coat.

Peel garlic and smash it with the side of the knife. You can also chop it or mince it if you prefer.

Heat a wok or large skillet with 2 tbsp cooking oil and when oil is hot add beef and cook stirring occasionally for about 2 minutes, and then add 1 tbsp of cumin. Stir fry the beef for another 3 minutes or until the meat is mostly browned.

Remove beef from heat but keep the oil / juice in the wok / skillet. Set aside.

If there isn’t any oil left behind, add some more cooking oil. Add sliced onions and stir fry about 2 minutes.

Add the beef back in to wok, add 1 tbsp of cumin, salt, scallions, and dried red pepper (optional). Stir fry everything for about 2 more minutes or until everything is cooked thoroughly.

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Remove from heat and serve!

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