Crispy Beef in Honey-Sesame Sauce

PREPARING

1. Place the cut beef into a bowl, add the white pepper, oyster sauce, and soy sauce. Mix thoroughly by hand and set aside to marinate for 10 minutes.
2. In a separate large bowl, combine the eggs, all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, water, and 2 teaspoons of oil. Whisk into a smooth, fairly thick batter.
3. Toss the marinated beef pieces into the prepared batter and mix thoroughly to ensure every piece of meat is perfectly coated.
4. In a pot or wok, heat a generous amount of vegetable oil for deep frying to approximately 185°C.
5. Fry the beef in batches for 3 minutes to prevent the pieces from sticking together, until the batter is lightly browned. Remove the meat with a slotted spoon onto a wire rack or paper towel.
6. Turn up the heat to get the oil hotter. Toss all the beef back into the pot for a second fry lasting 2 minutes—this step will make the coating incredibly crispy. Drain the meat from the excess oil.
7. In a clean pan, heat 1 teaspoon of oil, add the chopped garlic, and fry for 30 seconds, taking care not to burn it.
8. Pour the pre-mixed sauce ingredients into the pan: soy sauce, oyster sauce, rice vinegar, ketchup, honey, sugar, and water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes.
9. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the pan and stir vigorously for 1 minute until the sauce thickens significantly and becomes glossy. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the sesame oil.
10. Toss the crispy beef into the hot sauce and quickly mix to ensure the sauce thoroughly coats all the meat pieces. Serve immediately.