Velveting meat is a Chinese cooking technique used in Chinese restaurants. The process of velveting is one where you marinate raw meat in cornstarch and egg white or bicarbonate of soda to give it a soft, slippery, velvety texture. For years I watched my mother "velvet" beef and chicken neither of us knowing what the term was but happy that the beef and chicken that we ate was soft in texture-I guess taking it for granted. It was only when I saw Rachel's recipe for velvet chicken that it ticked over in my head that my mother used this method and that it was called velveting!
About once in a while I get an email from a Dear Reader asking me how to get the distinctive soft texture of meat found at Chinese restaurants. This usually follows after I share one of my mother's recipes. Being not very clever I didn't put two and two together and realise that this was something that you might all find useful. But let me change that situation today.
Velveting can be done a lot of different ways but today I'm going to show you how my mother does it using two different methods. When I asked her about velveting, the term drew a blank look. It was something that she picked up from a recipe book decades ago and there was no name for it. It was just one step in the recipe. But now people are cooking more Chinese food at home and trying to replicate their favourite take out dishes without the addition of MSG or additives. And the texture of velveted meat is so distinctive - and world's apart if no velveting is employed. You can turn chicken breast from a dryish "rough" texture to a soft, moist, slippery meat.
The good news is that velveting chicken is easy but velveting beef is even easier still! All you do is slice the beef against the grain and then marinate it in bicarb for 20 minutes before washing the bicarb off thoroughly (make sure to do this because you don't want the bicarb taste). For chicken breast you mix it with egg white, cornstarch and bicarb and then quickly simmer it in water. Both method tenderise the meat quickly. And if you are really pressed for time and effort, the beef method using just the bicarb also works nicely for chicken too, just marinate it for 7-8 minutes.
I was in Canberra the past two weekends ago doing a bit of research for two upcoming Canberra posts. One day I was eating lunch by myself at a hotel and I was struck by how different the conversations are in the capital. While I waited for my food I overheard a three generational family having a conversation. A man was telling a story to two women and a young boy. The topics ranged from human trafficking, slavery and Afghanistan. It was all very adult and fascinating (I love these types of conversations and I was so engrossed in it I almost wanted to join in).
"And then that was all just a moral cover," he said.
"What's moral cover?" I said to myself.
"What's moral cover?" said the young boy. Phew, I didn't have to interrupt their conversation and let them know that yes I was listening (although anyone watching closely would have known it).
He explained that it was a term for when you do something bad but find a moral reason for doing it. Therefore getting a moral cover or an excuse for doing something. I felt smarter just for sitting near them and learning a new term.
Along with learning the term velveting of course! ;)
So tell me Dear Reader, have you ever heard of velveting meat before? Or the term moral cover? Do you tenderise your meat usually before cooking it? Have you got another method?
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Beef & Broccoli
Rated 5.0 out of 5 by 2 readers
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott
Serves 4
- 500g/1.1lb piece of rump steak
- 4 tablespoons bicarbonate of soda
- 2-3 tablespoon water (enough to form a paste)
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed with the base of your knife
- 1 large onion, peeled and cut into sixths
- 1 head of broccoli, florets only
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornflour or fine cornstarch and 2 tablespoons cold water
Step 1 - Slice the beef against the grain - this helps the velveting process as it gets into the fibres better. Make sure to remove the white sinewy bits as they will not soften and will make the meat chewy. Place the beef slices a bowl and toss with the bicarb and water until the beef pieces are coated. Cover and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.
Step 2 - Have all of the other ingredients ready because this cooks very quickly. Rinse the bicarb from the meat very well (feel the beef and if there are any grains of bicarb keep rinsing it under running water) and pat dry with a couple of paper towels. Place a large wok or pan on high heat and add some oil. Fry the beef browning it until almost cooked through. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add some more oil and add the onion and garlic and fry until soft and translucent. Add the broccoli and fry for about 30 seconds. Add the soy sauce and sugar and the beef and toss quickly and briefly until the beef is done. Push aside the beef and vegetables to get to the sauce and add the cornflour and water mixture to the sauce to thicken. Toss the sauce over the beef and vegetables and serve.
Chicken with snow peas
- 500g/1.1lbs chicken breast or 1.5 large chicken breasts
- 1 egg white
- 2 tablespoons cornflour or fine cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon bicarb of soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 7 slices fresh ginger
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 1 large onion, peeled and cut into sixths
- 200g/7ozs. snow peas
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons cornflour or fine cornstarch and 4 tablespoons cold water
Step 1 - Slice the chicken breast thinly against the grain into small, thin strips. I think my slices were too thick so I'd cut the breast in half horizontally first. Whisk the egg white a little until foamy and then whisk in the bicarb and cornflour. Coat the chicken in this mixture. Cover and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Step 2 - Heat a large saucepan of water to boil and add the chicken in one piece at a time so that it doesn't stick together. Simmer for about 45 seconds and then drain in a sieve.
Step 3 - Heat a frypan with oil and add the ginger, garlic and onion and fry. Add the snow peas and fry for about 30 seconds and then add the chicken stock, soy sauce and chicken. Cook for about a minute or two until the chicken is cooked through. Push aside the chicken and snow peas to get to the sauce and add half of the cornflour and water mixture to the sauce to thicken adding more if necessary. Toss the sauce over the chicken and vegetables and serve.
60 User Comments Add your own
Truthfully, I'd most like to come to your house for dinner and have you make the velvet chicken and beef... my mouth is watering!
That's just genius - I'm definitely going to give this a go! I can't wait for your Canberra posts and I'm pleased I'm not the only one who "tunes in" to other people's conversations!
I found out almost by accident that you can tenderize chicken just by sprinkling corn flour over it - but I've never heard of these methods of 'velveting'! I learnt something here today, Lorraine. Thank you!
I LOVED your story about the eavesdropping, too. I do that too!!
How funny that you've been doing something all your life but not knowing it by a name.
I can't remember where I learned about velveting. Possibly the Jamie Oliver forums. In their hey day that forum was very educational with members from all over the globe sharing their knowledge.
I've used cornflour to velvet chicken for a very long time. For stirfry I usually put the chicken in a bowl with a splash of Chinese cooking wine & maybe a splash of light soy before adding the cornflour & stirring it all together.
I've never tried velveting beef or using bicarb. Will have to do some experimenting.
Thanks for the tips.
Mmm...looks just like how Mum did it when I was a boy 😃😋👍🏻
Thanks for this great tip Lorraine. I really like being able to make "take away" style meals at home, particularly Chinese food, so I'm going to try velveting and see if my husband notices the difference. Your mother is a treasure. Please thank her for sharing all her skills and knowledge with us.
Dang girl.... this is ace! It is my last week at the Press Club and I have asked for sushi spectacular with a side of chinese style meat, the shiny, soft kind (no one blinked an eye at my request) but I did see the chef looking for a recipe to create my chinese dish yesterday. Totes send him this. Thank you. :)
Ah yes, I use velveting ( eggwhite/cornflour/rice wine) when doing an old fashioned meat stir fry for the kidlets and other carnivores- it is always a successful dish.
One of the other tricks with the beef stir fry is to freeze the meat for a short time before slicing it. This enables you to slice it really finely.
This technique was outlined way back in the days of the early Margaret Fulton books, who probably learnt it from 'old school' Chinese cooks in Australia.
Wow, that's interesting. I had never given too much tho
thought to why Chinese restaurant meat was soft, but now I know!
This makes such a difference to the meat, so nice and tender indeed- thanks for sharing Lorraine. Your Mum is one clever lady! Xo
I haven't heard of velveting as such before but I sure have tasted the benefits! Such a lovely term.
Thanks for the this recipe.I think I've been trying to velvet but not doing it quite right.I love all your lead up stories and this one about moral cover!
What's it called , AGAIN.....Velveting ...???
mmmm ..I use Bi carb for literally EVERYTHING ....Ive heard
of this method before from my Caterer Sister in Law ...NOW , Ill try it the Lorraine way ...Say thanks to Mum ..
Never thought of it ir heard of velveting before, amazingly simple! I have heard of moral cover though....
Velveting - best word ever! I don't prepare meat as I don't eat meat, but The HUngry Dad would lurve this technique.
Well thank you Lorraine! I've always tried to imitate that tender as tender Chinese chicken and meat but never came close. Even though I didn't use the term 'velveting' I kind of guessed that it involved a tenderisation process.
So please explain ;-) , the bicarb is washed off the beef but not the chicken before cooking?
Moral cover is a newie for me but after you explained it totally makes sense. This gentleman reminded me of my old friend Bula he was my surgeon and so lovely we became family friends. I'd often invite he and his wife for dinner as he loved the way I cooked mussels Italian style. He was a highly intelligent, gifted person ( micro surgery became his forte) but also a wonderful narrator . He would have everyone hanging onto his every word at the dinner table. Isn't it a shame that in this busy age of ours , many families don't do that any more. Just sit around and converse! :-)
Hi Matilda! Yes there isn't much bicarb on the chicken whereas there is a lot on the beef so you want to avoid the flavour there. Plus the chicken gets a dunk in water too.
He sounds like a great friend and dinner guest! I love people that know clever things and can converse well! It's becoming like a lost art.
I have to admit to knowing what velveting is but never doing it - and obviously I should and it's not as tricky as I thought!
Just loving your stories, recipes and the fabulous photos! Fond regards to your mum.
What a beautiful explanation of velveting. You always present perfectly cooked Chinese cuisine and today is no exception. Thanks Lorraine 8)
YES. Thank you, Lorraine! This has been one of those things I wasn't sure how to google.
Wow, I never knew about the part about cooking the chicken in water, too. My Mom would use baking soda on chicken, too, but in a minute amount, like just a pinch. I always wondered how that could do much of anything, but it did seem to tenderize the chicken pieces. She just cooked the chicken with the baking soda on it, without rinsing or boiling it off. Probably because it was such a tiny amount. So interesting to see how different families cook similar dishes. I always learn something new.
I do a cheat's version of just rubbing some corn flour into the meat before marinating it. That way it softens the meat and thickens the sauce when I cook it 😀
I always wondered how beef and chicken from restaurants was so velvety, now I know. Thanks as always for sharing :)
I haven't heard of velveting, but I have used the cornflour and egg white technique without realising it was a technique! I'll be giving the bicarbonate of soda a go next time I stir fry beef...
Not at all sure about moral cover.....
OMG .... Just cooked the chicken for dinner and it is amazing... My mind is racing as I never ever managed to get my stir fried food to taste like a restaurants. I will apply the bicarbonate principle to lots of my recipes. So so exciting.
Hi Stephen! I'm so glad that you loved it as much as we do!! YAYY!! :D
So THAT'S what it's called! Velveting. I have used recipes that tell you to tenderise the meat in cornstarch but I have always been too afraid of the bicarb.
We always learn something new everyday from you, Lorraine!
Hiya Lorraine!
This might be a dumb question but can you do this with pork too? Just curious!
Thanks for this!!! I've been slicing meat the "Chinese restaurant" style for about two years And never knew what I was missing - THIS IS IT!!!
Hi Steph! You can indeed! My mother has used it for pork. I think the bicarb trick would work best with pork and maybe marinate it for 12-15 or so minutes? :D
I know the term velveting from a cooking show (can't remember which) a long time ago but I have never tried it.
It's possible I'm trying that beef recipe tomorrow ;) thanks.
Holy shit, so that's how restaurants get their meat so soft and slippery. Thank, Lorraine, total game-changer for Wednesday night stirfry.
I have seen this term before but only just recently. I am very intrigued and will definitely try it the next time I'm doing a stir fry. Or even Chicken fajitas. Bicarb of Soda (we call it baking soda) has so many uses. For example, JT puts a pinch into his chicken cacciatore tomato sauce, it literally equalizes the acidity and it tastes like you added sugar to it, and I know he doesn't.
I also mix equal parts of baking soda, dawn liquid dishwashing deterg and peroxide and make a paste of it. You have the absolute BEST stain remover EVER! You will want to check colour fastness before you put it on a visible part of the garment, also, don't leave on overnight, few hours will do as the peroxide will bleach colour eventually.
I have been adding 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate to all my marinated Chinese ever since I saw Gabriel Gatè use this method a long time ago. Yours is is different in that you use a lot and then wash it off...may need to change! Growing up my Italian dad who was a great cook would have particular techniques. Now I see chefs all showing us these methods.
Aaaaaaahhhh, excellent technique, thanks! Can you still taste the bicarbonate afterwards? I do lots of yeast baking just to avoid the taste, lol.
Ha, that conversation, like so many we have with our girls. They are insatiably curious about everything from spider silk, to UN security resolutions.
Hi Ivy! You can't taste the bicarb at all with the beef as you wash it off really well and you can't with the chicken as such a small amount is used :D
They sound like they will grow up to be interesting souls!
Velveting is a technique I've only discovered recently and I love how it makes beef and pork deliciously tender. Plus, it keeps chicken from drying out even when the dish is cold. So definitely delish!
Hi there, this would be a great contribution to Food on Friday: Beef over at Carole's Chatter. Please do bring it over to join in the fun. Cheers
This is awesome! I tried it for dinner last night! It worked HOWEVER...listen to Lorraine people-WASH THE BI-CARB THOROUGHLY!!!! I was in a rush and THOUGHT I read all instructions, but didn't and just rinsed the beef a few times before cooking it, adding sauce, veggies and noodles.
Needless to say, the local Vietnamese place provided dinner last night because I didn't think eating the heavily bi-carb tasting dish was a good idea! I'm still trying this again on the weekend though!!!
Oh Steph you poor thing! I know what you mean, you think it's all visually gone but it clings a bit! Did you try it again? :D
I'm planning on doing this to our stir fry tonight - can you do it to lamb too? I'd love to be able to cook Mongolian Lamb that tastes like the one from the local take away!
This looks so delicious!! I had actually heard of the technique with egg white but never knew it was called velveting. I'm so glad I read this post because I do love how meat in Chinese and Vietnamese dishes is so smooth and tender! And these recipes look amazing! Gosh, my son would go nuts if I made these!
I heard about the method a very long time ago however I have avoided it as is alleged to destroy food nutrients. But it does make meat so much more enjoyable to eat.
http://www.streetdirectory.com/food_editorials/health_food/healthy_eating/bicarbonate_of_soda_the_magic_ingredient.html
Wow! This trick is incredible!
But I combined both beef and chicken recipes (sort of). I had a 3/4 lb leftover rare grilled chuck steak, and 1-1/2 lbs chicken thighs. Sliced all thin and small.
First soaked the beef in 6 Tablespoons water mixed with 4 Tablespoons baking soda while I sliced up the chicken. Then I mixed in the raw chicken (didn't do the precooking) and let that all sit for about 10 minutes while I sliced up 2 medium yellow onions and 4 fresh not-quite-fully ripe tomatoes (from garden). (it's October)
Rinsed meat very thoroughly under running water, then put in hot pan.
After quickly sauteing/stir frying the beef and chicken mixture in 3 Tablespoons oil til cooked, I removed that to a bowl and put it in the oven to keep warm. (no heat though)
Then I added about 2 Tablespoons oil to pan, got it hot, added the onions stir frying till semi brown/translucent, added the tomatoes, stir fried them, then mixed in 4 Tablespoons garlic powder, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1/2 cup soy sauce, a 10-ounce bag of frozen broccoli, 1 Tablespoon ground ginger, 1/2 cup Splenda, and 1/2 cup water. Mixed all this until broccoli was just semi-cooked (tomatoes made it saucier). Added 1/4 cup potato starch. Stirred in the meat mixture, and cooked a minute or so longer to mix flavors.
Served over white rice.
The velveting really makes the texture appealing.
(would've loved to have had snow peas on hand)
I'm Slovak so this is cooking out of my normal zone. But I am proud of how it turned out. Thanks!
peace, love, & happiness!
That's wonderful Teri!! I'm so glad that you enjoyed it :D Thanks for letting us know!!
Hello Lorraine - thank you for sharing your secrets. I found your site because I've been looking online to replicate the incredibly tender pork I had on holiday in Spain and have never managed to recreate myself at home, however much brining, marinading, pounding, pricking and general faffing around I've tried! Even with the best little fillets of tenderloin I could source, it just wasn't the same. So I decided it must be either a) voodoo witchcraft, or possibly more plausibly b) a tenderising process I'd never heard of.
The thing is, the pork was cooked in the restaurant in full view - the chef had a big pile of thin slices sitting in a not-very-appetising looking wet and slippery pile. But he just seared it quickly for a few minutes and it was the most tender pork I've ever eaten. Do you think it was more likely to be the bicarb trick or maybe papain - commercial papaya powder? I'm not sure whether to buy some official tenderizer containing papaya from Amazon or just try bicarb. I'm a bit scared of bicarb because I know how pungent the flavour can be in bread and scones. I've read a tip that after treating pork or chicken with a simple teaspoon of bicarb in water for around 15 minutes, you can then give it a quick bath in the diluted juice of a lemon - apparently the acid counteracts the unpleasant flavour of the alkali? Hmm. I'm just confused! And I don't even know what kind of pork the chef originally used - just that it was thin slices obviously taken from a large lean cut of meat, with no visible fat or marbling, rather fibrous looking. Would you suggest any particular piece of pork to work with? Any help would be much appreciated... I'm not quite sure what method to try.
Hi Isla! I wonder if it was the iberico pig that you were eating? I had it in Singapore and it was so tender and delicious. I'm not sure about the rest as I've never tried it but you've made me want to eat it!
I made the velvet chicken last night. It was magnificent. I cant wait to try some other recipes. I love a stir fry and now knowing this trick, I will make many more.
Yay Kerri!! That's fabulous! I'm so glad that you liked it :D
I understand that we can use the 'beef velveting method' for chicken as well. But, the other way around, can we use the 'chicken velveting method' to velvet the beef? What is the reason that for velveting chicken the egg white and the corn starch are added?
Hi Fred, I'm not sure but I don't see why not. You'll just get that extra coating on the beef.
You wrote: "For chicken breast you mix it with egg white, cornstarch and bicarb and then quickly simmer it in water". So here you don't let it marinade? And don't wash the bicarb off? Just to be sure I'll do it the right way
I made this, and it worked well. The only negative was that the bicarb flavor was still present after much rinsing. According to another recipe it should be 3/4 teaspoon to 8oz meet, so I may try reducing the amount and seeing if the technique still works.
In the chicken recipe, salt is listed as an ingredient. When is it used? In the velveting or in the main recipe? I don’t see it mentioned.
This is the 1st time I've heard of velveting...did stir fry beef tonight & the beef was tough, so went searching & found 'velveting'...so now I know what to do next time
I read your entire post/velveting recipe and enjoyed it so much, I've bookmarked your site! I seldom read the stories and only hunt for the recipe but you sound genuine and very much a foodie who enjoys great food at home. Thank you for sharing as I try your culinary suggestions!
Best guide for velveting around. Worked amazingerly!
I have just come back to cook your recipe yet again and just realised thatvit can gecrated. Definitely 5 stars. I hope you read this and realise the impact you make with your recipes and reviews. Happy festive season Lorraine and family x
Hi Merryn, thank you so much for your lovely feedback and comment. It means so much to me to hear that. A very Merry Christmas to you and your loved one!s xxx