How to make a batter that is hard and hold up to sauce

I am trying to recreate Beijing Beef like they have at Panda Express. Most copycat recipes are recommending a batter made from some combination of cornstarch and flour. I am finding that the batter is too delicate and quickly turns to mush when mixed in with the sauce.

The batter on the Panda Express beef is quite thick and hard, almost like a rock so it holds up to the sauce well, although I would say it is not the most crisp of batters.

Do any of you have any ideas of ingredients/techniques that can produce that kind of heavy and hard batter?

deep-frying restaurant-mimicry

Best Answer

It sounds more like they're frying, then baking the beef in the oven to finish it.

Fry the battered beef until in floats (to ensure it cooks all of the way through,) then bake in a 350° oven until it reaches your desired crispness. The longer it bakes the harder it should get.

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What flour makes crispy batter?

Use Cornstarch or Rice Flour Michael says that cornstarch or rice flour in combo with flour will give you the crunchiest batter. Even cake four will cook up crunchier than all-purpose flour because it doesn't have a high gluten level.

Does baking soda make batter crispy?

The simplest one involves the use of cold sparkling water, flour, pepper and a pinch of baking soda: a batter for crispy and swollen fried food, without the use of eggs, for frying vegetables, fish or chicken.

Does rice flour make things crispy?

\u201cRice flour is a really fun way to make something crispy and crave-able, even for people with dietary restrictions.\u201d If you're frying with rice flour at home, Manno recommends you use smaller pieces of meat and vegetables, since rice flour is finely ground and browns faster than wheat flour.

What are the procedures for making batter?

Method

In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt.

Whisk in milk and water until it is the consistency that will coat the back of a spoon.

Dip your fish or chicken into the batter.

Fry in hot vegetable oil (190\xb0C) until golden.

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