Shaking beef

Bò lúc lắc is a Vietnamese stir-fry of small cubes of beef, seared quickly over high heat and tossed in a sweet-savoury sauce. The name refers to the shaking motion of the pan or wok used to cook it.

What it really is

Classic bò lúc lắc uses beef sirloin or fillet cut into cubes of about 2 cm, marinated in garlic, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar and black pepper, and sometimes a little fish sauce. The cubes are seared in a very hot wok or pan with oil, often with onion, and finished with a splash of butter or extra seasoning. The beef is kept pink inside and is usually served as a separate dish, not in a broth or sauce.

It is normally eaten with a lettuce and tomato garnish, sliced onion and a dipping sauce of lime juice, salt and cracked black pepper. Its main look-alike is bò nướng lá lốt or other grilled beef dishes, but shaking beef is pan-seared, not grilled, and is defined by the rapid cooking of the cubes in a hot pan.

How it's served

• Served hot as a main or shared dish, with the beef on a plate or in a bowl.
• Eaten with a bed of lettuce, cucumber or tomato wedges, and sliced onion.
• Dipped in a small bowl of lime juice mixed with salt and black pepper.
• Often accompanied by steamed white rice or bread to soak up the juices.

How to write it on the menu

• Name the beef cut (sirloin or fillet) and the sauce base: garlic, soy sauce, oyster sauce.
• Flag soy (soy sauce) and wheat, and mention fish sauce if used, as well as the sulphites from oyster sauce being absent: list SOY and WHEAT.
• State that the beef is cooked rare to medium, and that it is served with lime-pepper-salt dipping sauce.
• Common variants: beef with extra onion, or a version finished with butter; say which is served.