If you have ground beef in the fridge, this quick beef and cabbage stir-fry with a savory sauce is an easy, high-protein dinner to serve over rice.
Ground Beef Cabbage Stir Fry
If you have a package of ground beef and aren’t sure what to make, this ground beef and cabbage stir-fry is a great place to start. It’s similar to my egg roll bowl, but with a different approach and end result. Instead of a dry-style skillet meant to be eaten on its own, this version uses a savory stir-fry sauce that coats the beef and vegetables and is meant to be enjoyed over rice. The sauce cooks down until glossy and balanced, soaking into the cabbage as it softens and pairing perfectly with the rice for a comforting, weeknight-friendly meal. For more dinner ideas that use ground beef, check out my ground beef recipes.
Why This Recipe Works
My go-to recipe when I have ground beef is usually picadillo, but I like to change it up! This stir fry dinner, requires minimal prep, and cooks in one pan in 15 minutes, a huge win in my book. Bonus points, my whole family loves it. Here’s why this beef cabbage stir fry checks all the boxes:
- High-protein and satisfying: A full package of lean ground beef makes this a protein-forward dinner.
- Perfect for cabbage: Cabbage cooks down quickly and absorbs the savory stir-fry sauce, so every bite is flavorful without feeling heavy.
- Fast weeknight dinner: Everything cooks in one pan, and the sauce comes together in minutes.
- Meal-prep friendly: It reheats well and holds its texture, making it great for leftovers or make-ahead lunches.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Keep reading to learn more about the ingredients in this easy beef and cabbage stir fry recipe. See the recipe card below for the exact measurements.
Stir Fry Sauce
- Low-sodium Soy Sauce or Tamari for salty umami flavor.
- Beef broth or water thins the sauce, making it pourable so it coats the beef and cabbage.
- Oyster Sauce and Hoisin Sauce are thick, slightly sweet, dark-brown sauces commonly used in Asian recipes.
- Mushroom or Dark Soy Sauce: They’re richer than regular soy sauce, but if you don’t have them, use extra hoisin.
- Toasted Sesame Oil for rich, nutty flavor
- Cornstarch thickens the sauce.
Stir Fry
- Lean Ground Beef, like sirloin or bison, is a major timesaver. No slicing or marinating required
- Aromatics: Freshly grated ginger and finely chopped garlic
- Sesame Oil to grease the pan. You can also use avocado oil.
- Vegetables: Sliced napa cabbage and shredded carrots. I used pre- shredded carrots from the grocery store, which are thicker than those I would grate at home, adding a nice crunch.
- Scallions: Slice the green tops of scallions for garnish.
How to Make Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry
This beef stir fry cooks quickly, so make sure everything is out and ready before you start cooking. See the recipe card at the bottom for printable directions.
- Make the stir-fry sauce by whisking all the ingredients together in a measuring cup.
- Cook the ground beef and aromatics: Brown the meat in a large skillet, then add the garlic and ginger. Transfer the mixture to a plate and wipe the pan clean with a paper towel.
- Sauté the vegetables: Pour the sesame oil into the hot skillet and cook the cabbage for a few minutes. Add the carrots and meat, then the sauce, and cook for about 30 seconds.
Recipe Testing Notes
I tested this recipe a few times to dial in both the sauce and the vegetable ratio. Cabbage shrinks significantly as it cooks, so I increased the amount to make sure it didn’t disappear in the pan. Once cooked, the sauce balanced beautifully—savory and rich, not sweet—especially when paired with plenty of cabbage and served over rice. Browning the beef well and adding the sauce at the end helped everything come together with the right texture and flavor.
Variations and Tips
- No mushroom or dark soy sauce? Substitute hoisin.
- Meat options: You could also make this stir fry with ground turkey or sliced skirt or flank steak. Cook the steak for about 3 minutes on each side.
- Can I use coleslaw mix instead of fresh cabbage? Yes, it’s a great shortcut to save time.
- Carrot tip: If you don’t buy pre-shredded carrots, you can quickly shred them with a food processor’s shredding disc.
- Add other vegetables, such as mushrooms, bell peppers, or zucchini.
- Gluten-free stir fry: Use tamari instead of soy sauce, and look for gluten- free oyster sauce, hoisin, beef broth, and mushroom/dark soy sauce (or use extra GF hoisin).
- Make it spicy: Finish it off with sriracha, gochujang, chili oil, or red pepper flakes.
Serving Suggestions
Serve this cabbage and beef stir fry over rice, cauliflower rice (to keep it low-carb), or udon or soba noodles to soak up the sauce.
Storage
- Refrigerate leftovers for up to 4 days. You can store the rice and meat separately or pack them together in 2-cup containers to take to work.
- Freeze the stir fry for up to 3 months. You can freeze the rice and meat together, or freeze just the meat and make fresh rice before eating.
- Reheat: Thaw in the fridge and microwave until warm.
More Stir Fry Recipes You’ll Love
For more fast and easy dinner ideas, check out these five delicious stir-fry recipes to inspire your next meal!
- Ground Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry
- Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry
- Tofu Stir Fry with Vegetables
- Shrimp Stir Fry
- Chicken and Broccoli Recipe
Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry
Ingredients
For the Stir Fry Sauce:
- 3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce, or gluten free tamari
- ¼ cup beef broth, or water
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, or Gluten-Free Oyster Sauce
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce, or Gluten-Free Hoisin Sauce
- 1 teaspoon mushroom soy sauce, or dark soy sauce, use more GF hoisin for GF
- ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
For the Stir Fry:
- 1 pound lean ground beef, such as sirloin or bison
- 2 teaspoons ginger, fresh grated
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 6 cups napa cabbage, sliced
- 1 ½ cups shredded carrot
- Rice, optional for serving
- scallion greens for garnish
Instructions
- To make the sauce, add all of the ingredients to a measuring cup and whisk to combine. Set aside.
- Heat a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat and spray with oil. Add the ground beef and use a wooden spoon to break it up into small pieces. Cook, stirring occasionally until the beef is browned and cooked through. Add the garlic and ginger and cook 30 seconds more, until fragrant. Transfer the beef to a plate.
- Use a paper towel to wipe the pan clean then return it to the stove.
- Add the sesame oil to the hot skillet over medium heat. Add the cabbage. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is just tender, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the carrot and cooked ground beef to the skillet and stir to incorporate. Add the sauce and stir to combine. Cook for 30 to 40 seconds, until the sauce is coating the meat well. Remove from heat.
- Serve over rice and garnish with scallions and toasted sesame seeds.
Doubled sauce like everyone suggested. Added a little more soy sauce to serve with a touch of Thai sweet chili sauce. Absolutely delicious!
Overall this was really good. I made almost as written, except I added red chili flakes to the sauce and a can of drained and rinsed white navy beans for some fiber. I had leftovers but there was a LOT of water in the bottom of the skillet, which was okay for eating it the night of, but there was too much to store it as was out of the skillet. Next time I will drain the water after wilting the cabbage down before adding the beef etc back into the pan. But it was super tasty!
Easy to make and tastes good. Doubled the sauce.
Simple, flavorful, inexpensive and hits all the macros. Putting it on the rotation for weekly meals.
Family enjoyed it. I doubled the recipe and it worked perfectly.
I made this tonight and substituted a bag of coleslaw mix for the cabbage and carrots. It was a hit with the whole family!
Love this suggestion!
Easy and flavorful! I ate over cauliflower rice.
Excellent dish! Gina is right: it’s a great way to use a pound of ground beef. I used regular green cabbage and just stir fried a bit longer. I also added some peas for color.
This dish was easy and really tasty! I didn’t have as many carrots as I thought I did, so used what I had then added a can of bamboo shoots. Next time I will make sure to have the correct amount of carrots – and I will probably put in the bamboo shoots, too. Good stuff!
Really easy and love the flavor !
Delicious! We used noodles instead of rice. The recipe was perfect and full of flavor! My kids even loved it!
We thought the recipe lacked a bit of flavor and my wife said she thought it was bland. I made the recipe, and liked the flavor but also thought it needed something to bring it to life. Could we use a different meat or extra flavors? I faithfully use your recipes for years and have several cookbooks this isn’t a criticism but want to improve it. Keep,mailing me recipes, I love them.
This was delicious! I doubled the sauce b/c we like extra. I used regular cabbage and sliced it into 1/4”-1/2” thick pieces. It wasn’t softened after a couple minutes, so I added a couple tablespoons of water and covered the pan letting it steam for a few minutes. Hubby had it over rice. Another winner! Thank you, Gina!
Great!!!
Can I use regular cabbage
Sure!