Spicy Citrus Beef with Celery and Carrots

Someone, aka "my loving boyfriend" as he calls himself, made this dish for me super spicy a few weeks ago. I was at the bottom of the stairs and I was coughing a bit from the ground thai pepper. I also had a bit of the sniffles while eating it that night. The above photo is my version of the dish.

The recipe from that night's dish is from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything. I have the iOS app and I found it in the Variations section for Stir-fried Beef with Basil. I think it's the same recipe but I haven't looked at the two side by side to confirm. Anyhow since I wasn't confident I tried to find a similar recipe and found Spicy Dry-Fried Beef in Grace Young's Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge. I decided to make a dish based on the two recipes.

2 tablespoons of peanut oil

0.6 lbs flank steak, thinly sliced

-I'm too lazy to look it up but I would guess sirloin or strip steak will be a
softer cut. I did cut the meat at an angle and against the grain and I still wish it was softer. The next time I make this dish I'm going to use my meat tenderizer

1 whole zest of a large orange

0.75 teaspoon of grounded Thai chiles

3 cups of carrots and celery cut in julienne

1 tablespoon of ginger, diced

1 tablespoon of garlic, minced

2 teaspoons of sesame oil

1 tablespoon of fish sauce, I happen to use the Golden Boy brand

1/2 of a lime's juice with some orange juice
-adjust the distribution between the two by taste preference

1 stalk of scallions, thinly sliced

Mix the orange zest with the beef. I didn't have a zester but I did have a Microplane Spice Grater. I believe it's finer than the Classic Zester. I'm not sure how much that affected the taste, but I would recommend using the right tool whenever possible.

Heat the wok at medium heat. When it's hot enough for drops of water to evaporate on contact add 1 tablespoon of peanut oil. You may need 1-2 tablespoons depending on your wok's seasoning. Increase your stove's heat to high and allow the oil to get hot.

Put the carrots in an even layer and stir fry. After a few seconds you can add the celery. I don't like carrots raw so I tend to give it more time before I throw the celery. After about a minute take them off the wok and set aside on a plate.

Add another tablespoon of peanut oil. You should only have enough beef to cover the bottom part of the wok in one layer. Each beef should be touching the wok and the more sizzle you hear the better. Otherwise you're losing too much of the wok's heat. Do not touch the beef for a minute.

Add 1/4 teaspoon of grounded chiles on the beef. Flip the meat to the other side. Water is going to start coming out of the meat. Allow it to evaporate.

Add the ginger, garlic, and sesame oil. Put the carrots and celery back into the wok. Add the fish sauce and lime and orange juice. Allow the liquid to reduce and place the scallion into the mix.

This dish wasn't as dry as I wanted so I need to tweak this recipe. For my family this was too spicy so I would cut it back next time.