Easy Beef Stir Fry Recipe

If you want a delicious weeknight meal for the family, then this amazing beef stir fry loaded with vegetables and a homemade sauce comes together in under 30 minutes.

This is such a great last-minute option during the week, just like an easy beef stroganoff recipe, Chicken Fried Rice, or a Sloppy Joe Recipe, since a lot of ingredients can already be found in your cupboards.  In addition, it’s always a family favorite and comes together in no time, and it’s a great way to get your children to eat vegetables.

What Do You Put in It

Since it can use just about any ingredient you’d like, there is some autonomy.  My suggestion is using ingredients you like, or are on sale, and are absolutely in peak season.

In addition to vegetables, you can choose a protein such as shrimp, pork, tofu, or chicken.  The last thing you’ll need is a sauce to coat it in.

Since I made a beef version, here is what I used:

• Flank steak
• Red bell peppers
• Shiitake mushrooms
• Yellow onions
• Green onions
• Broccoli
• Carrots

These are all things I know my daughter will eat, but if you are looking to swap out or add to this list, I would suggest the following:

• Zucchini
• Squash (yellow, butternut or spaghetti)
• Bok choy
• Cabbage
• Snow Peas
• Sugar Snaps
• Green beans
• Bell peppers
• Bamboo shoots
• Sprouts
• Cornichons
• Mint, basil or cilantro

I can’t stress enough to use ingredients you like, just like in my Chinese Steamed Fish recipe, as the sauce will complement the just about anything.

Variations

In addition to the many vegetables you can use in it, there are also variations with proteins that can be used.  You can also absolutely keep it completely vegetarian.

• Shrimp – Shrimp will add a delicious seafood flavor to you stir fry and you can simply swap out the beef in this recipe for 1 pound of shrimp.
• Chicken – If you are a huge chicken fan you can thinly slice it or cut into chunks and swap 1 pound of chicken for the beef in this recipe below.
• Pork – You can use a pork butt, picnic shoulder, tenderloin or pork loin in your recipe and can either be thinly sliced or cut into small cubes.
• Tofu – I recommend cutting extra firm tofu into small cubes before using it in your recipe.

To keep this recipe completely vegetarian, do not use the oyster sauce.

What Is the Best Cut of Beef to Use

The best meat to use is flank steak.  It’s lean, it’s on the cheaper side coming it at around $6.92 a pound and it’s easy to cut.  You can absolutely use one of the following cuts of beef as well.

• Filet mignon
• Strip steak
• Sirloin steak
• Top round

No matter what cut of meat you select; It should be thinly sliced against the grain for maximum tenderness.

The Sauce

Like the vegetable selection, there is some leeway with sauce. Here are the basic ingredients.

Oyster Sauce – This will add some exceptional flavors and while oysters are an ingredient, it is masked behind everything else in it, so don’t worry.

Sherry Wine – Sherry is incredibly traditional in Chinese cooking and will add another layer of complexity to it.  Don’t skimp on this.  Mirin or rice wine would be preferred over sherry wine if you can find it.

Sugar – Since there are so many savory and umami flavors in the sauce, help to balance it out with some sweetness.  You can also use honey if you’d like!

Soy Sauce – This will add some amazing umami salty flavors to help season it up.

Other optional ingredients you can add in: Hoison sauce, Fish Sauce, Sriracha, Chili Garlic-Sauce, etc.

How Do You Stir Fry

This is an ancient technique where I large pan called a wok which is made of carbon steel or cast iron and is placed over an extremely hot open flame burner.  Oil is used and then the addition of your ingredients.

• To stir fry, ensure your oil is rolling smoke before adding in any ingredients.
• Once the ingredients are added, hold the wok handle with one hand while holding a spoon or ladle in the other hand that is placed directly into the center of the wok touching the bottom of the work.
• Using your hand that is holding the handle move the wok backward and forwards vigorously while using your spoon hand to mix your ingredients around the work ensuring they do not stick to the pan.
• Finish by adding in your sauce, stir and serve.

How to Make Perfect Stir Fry

The key to perfecting it, is a very hot wok over high heat with rolling smoking oil, while constantly moving around the ingredients in the pan and cooking them for only a few minutes.

While any protein should be cooked through, vegetables should have a light sear and still hold their crispiness.  I recommend using an oil with a high smoking point like canola or vegetable oil.

How to Make Beef Stir Fry

• 1. Slice your beef very thin and place in a bowl
• 2. Mix together the beef with the marinating ingredients.
• 3. Prepare all vegetables and set aside.
• 4. Add oil to a hot wok over high heat until it begins to roll smoke.
• 5. Add in the beef and immediately push it to the outside of the pan so that each piece cooks.

• 6. Stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes
• 7. Set the meat aside.
• 8. Add more oil to the pan and wait till it rolls smoke.
• 9. Add in vegetables and stir fry for 1 to 2 minutes.
• 10. Pour in sauce ingredients and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
• 11. Add in the cooked meat and mix until combined.

What to Serve It With

It’s commonly served with cooked jasmine rice, chow mein noodles, rice noodles, lo mein noodles, soba noodles, or spaghetti or ramen noodles.  You could also just serve it plain like in my General Tso’s Chicken.

This easy recipe is so good and so simple to make, especially if you want to get something you can be proud of on to your kitchen table in under 30 minutes.

Reheat and Storage

How to Reheat: to reheat it simply add it back to a hot wok with a little bit of oil and stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes or until hot.  In addition, you can reheat in the microwave.

Storing and Freezing: to store it, cover it, and keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.  It does not freeze well as it will turn your vegetables to mush.

More Amazing Beef Recipes

• Steak Frites Recipe
• Beef Braciole
• New York Strip
• Florentine Steak
• T Bone Steak
• Loco Moco

Be sure to follow me on Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, and Pinterest, and if you’ve had a chance to make this then definitely drop me a comment and a rating below!

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Easy Beef Stir Fry Recipe

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5 from 28 votes

If you want a delicious weeknight meal for the family, then this beef stir fry with vegetables & homemade sauce comes together in 30 minutes.

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 8 minutes minutes

Total Time: 23 minutes minutes

Equipment

• wok

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

For the Beef:

• 1 pound thinly sliced flank steak
• 3 finely minced cloves of garlic
• 1 teaspoon peeled finely grated fresh ginger
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 large egg
• 3 tablespoons corn starch
• sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
• 3 tablespoons canola oil

For the Vegetables and Sauce:

• 2 seeded and thickly sliced red bell peppers
• 1 cup julienned shiitake mushrooms
• ½ peeled thinly sliced yellow onion
• 4 green onions cut into 2” long pieces
• 2 heads of trimmed broccoli
• ½ cup matchstick carrots
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry wine
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 4 cups cooked jasmine rice

Instructions

• Add the sliced beef, salt and pepper, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, egg, and corn starch to a bowl and mix until completely combined.
• Next, add 3 tablespoons of canola oil to a large wok over high heat.
• Once it begins to roll smoke add in the beef and immediately move it up the sides of the pan so that it doesn’t clump, and all of the pieces can get cooked.
• Stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes and set aside.
• Add 3 tablespoons of canola oil to the wok and return it to the burner over high heat until it rolls smoke again.
• Add in the bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, and green onions and stir fry for 1 to 2 minutes or until a light sear has been created.
• Add the broccoli and carrots to a separate large pot of boiling water and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
• Pour the oyster sauce, sherry, sugar and soy sauce to the wok with stir-fried vegetables and cook for 1 to 2 minutes stirring constantly.
• Add the boiled broccoli and carrots to the wok along with the cooked beef and mix until combined.
• 1Serve the beef stir fry with jasmine rice and add on optional garnishes of sliced green onions and sesame seeds.

Notes

Chef Notes:

• I can’t stress enough to use ingredients you like as the stir fry sauce will complement the just about anything.

 

• To keep this recipe completely vegetarian, do not use the oyster sauce.

 

• No matter what cut of beef you select; It should be thinly sliced against the grain for maximum tenderness.

 

• Mirin or rice wine would be preferred over sherry wine if you can find it.
  I recommend using an oil with a high smoking point like canola or vegetable oil.

Nutrition

Calories: 786kcalCarbohydrates: 88gProtein: 44gFat: 30gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 109mgSodium: 2077mgPotassium: 1886mgFiber: 12gSugar: 14gVitamin A: 6609IUVitamin C: 352mgCalcium: 224mgIron: 6mg

Course: Main

Cuisine: American, Asian

Author: Chef Billy Parisi