Slice the beef into 5-7 cm-wide strips, following the direction of the grain, then, cutting against the grain, cut into thin slices about 6 mm thick.
650 grams beef
Coat with baking soda and refrigerate for half an hour.
1 teaspoon bicarbonate
Using a zester knife (or similar tool), remove the zest from the orange, cut into 2.5 cm pieces and set aside.
1 orange
Slice the garlic, finely chop the white parts of the green onions (save the green parts for later), and finely chop (or even grate) the ginger, then set aside.
7 green onions, 4 cloves garlic, 1 piece of ginger
In a medium saucepan or skillet over medium heat, add a little oil, then add the ginger, garlic and spring onions. Sauté until softened.
7 green onions, 4 cloves garlic, 1 piece of ginger
Add the sauce mixture and bring to the boil before returning to a low heat and simmering for 5 min . If this takes too long, or if you're worried about excessive reduction, you can turn off the heat directly.
When the 30 minutes are up for the beef, add the egg white, stir by hand, then add the cornstarch and stir again by hand. Let the beef rest for a further 10 minutes.
1 egg, 80 grams cornstarch
Heat the frying oil in a wok or deep fryer to 190 degrees Celsius. Working in 3-4 batches, shake off excess cornstarch from the beef (a fine sieve works well for this), and fry the beef for about 3-4 minutes until crisp and cooked through.
500 ml neutral oil
Transfer the cooked beef to a paper-towel-lined baking sheet and sprinkle immediately with salt as it comes out of the oil.
Once the beef is cooked, drain the oil well, return some of it to the wok and heat over medium-high heat.
Add the orange zest to the oil and sauté for just under a minute (when it starts to brown but not yet burn).
Then add the sauce, which will immediately come to a boil. Allow to boil for about 30 seconds.
Stir in beef. Cook a few seconds longer, then remove from heat.
Garnish with finely chopped green onions
Notes
Fry in batches, otherwise they won't crisp up well. Or worse, the breadcrumbs will fall off and you'll end up with soles of breadcrumbs.