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I don't know how to cook beef, I'm really not a meat eater; however, I prepared a recipe from memory and I was in a rush and I thought I remembered reading to slice the meat along the grain...I was wrong. I see articles all over the internet about how to slice it correctly, but I don't see any articles about what to do to salvage your meat when its sliced incorrectly.

Right now my meat has been marinating for about 16 hours and I have 8 more hours to go. Is there anything I can do to this meat to guarantee that it'll still be tender, even though I sliced it wrong? I am making Hunan beef by the way. Thank you in advance for your responses.

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Marinading should help a great deal, especially a good long marinade. The only other thing you can do is make sure not to overcook the beef. Cutting against the grain doesn't guarantee tenderness any more than any other method will, it just helps, so don't worry too much.

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  • This. Also, consider cubing perhaps!
    – Preston
    Commented Oct 2, 2014 at 8:44
  • I second the don't overcook part, cook it as hot as you can as quick as you can.
    – GdD
    Commented Oct 2, 2014 at 11:04
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    O.M.G it turned out perfectly, I marinated the meat for over 24 hrs, about 30 lol and @PrestonFitzgerald I also cubed it and I blanched it extra hot and fast for about 10 seconds and I set it aside then when I was ready for it again I added it back and the meat is so tender and I added some "extras" to my marinade (chinese 5 spice, agave, brown sugar bourbon rub to the meat) and its SOOOOOOOOOOO flavorful, thank you all!
    – Let A Pro Do IT
    Commented Oct 2, 2014 at 22:29
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I will shamelessly steal @Jolenealaska's thunder and recommend velveting your meat as a means to protect against overcooking. This is a great method to bring meats just up to temperature, and is a very traditional preparation for stir-frys. Should work nicely with your Hunan Beef.

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