This Broccoli Beef satisfies my craving for Chinese takeout but with less oil and sugar than what you’ll find at most restaurants.
Broccoli Beef
One of my favorite types of food to order in is Chinese takeout. However, it is not always the healthiest. That’s why I love cooking lighter versions at home. This Broccoli Beef recipe is even better than takeout. You may also like this Peruvian Beef Stir Fry called Lomo Saltado. If you prefer chicken, try my Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry.
If you’re craving takeout, this beef and broccoli stir fry will definitely hit the spot. You can serve it over white or brown rice, or for a low-carb option, try cauliflower rice. My Easy Wonton Soup would really round out the meal.
This beef and broccoli recipe is from Gaby Dalkin’s gorgeous new cookbook Eat What You Want: 125 Recipes for Real Life (affil link). When I saw it, I couldn’t wait to try it! I modified the recipe only slightly to lighten it up by cutting back on the sugar and oil.
Gaby’s new cookbook is fantastic. It features recipes that are not only flavorful and simple to cook but also hearty and satisfying. You seriously need her book, you’ll want to make everything in it! Gaby created this dish because finding GREAT broccoli beef can be hard. She wanted to put her own take on it that would never disappoint. The ingredients are easy to find, and you’ll have plenty of leftovers.
What cut of meat is used for beef and broccoli?
Typically, flank steak is used for tender beef and broccoli. It’s inexpensive and widely available. You could also use flat iron steak.
How do you blanch broccoli?
This recipe calls for blanched broccoli. Blanching is an easy way to quickly cook vegetables.
Bring a big pot of water to boil. Drop the florets into the water and cook for two to three minutes until bright green and crisp-tender. Immediately drain in a colander and put in an ice bath (a large bowl filled with ice water), which will stop the cooking process. Once the broccoli is cool, drain in the colander again.
Variations:
- Use flat iron steak instead of flank steak.
- Swap the steak for chicken, or for a vegetarian version, use extra firm tofu.
- Serve over brown, white, or cauliflower rice.
More Stir Fry Recipes You’ll Love:
- Orange Chicken Makeover
- Honey Garlic Shrimp
- Chicken and Zucchini Stir Fry
- Soba Noodle Veggie Stir Fry
- General Tso’s Chicken
Broccoli Beef
Ingredients
- 1 pound flank steak, cut into thin strips
- 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce, or gluten-free tamari
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 one-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch, optional
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
- 1 large head broccoli, cut into florets and blanched
- cooked rice or cauliflower rice, for serving
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- 3 scallions, sliced on the bias
Instructions
- Season the beef with white pepper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and cornstarch, if using. Set aside.
- In a large nonstick skillet over high heat, warm 1/2 tablespoon of the sesame oil until just smoking. Add the beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is just about cooked through. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of oil to the skillet, then add the onions and cook until they are softened, about 8 minutes.
- Add the blanched and drained broccoli and cook for 1 minute. Then add the reserved sauce and stir to coat.
- Return the beef to the skillet and continue to cook until the beef is cooked through and the sauce has reduced slightly, about 3 minutes more.
- Transfer to serving plates over rice or veggie rice. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and scallions.
I made this for dinner last night and the family love it. I did not have cornstarch, since it was optional I skipped. Easy and delicious!
I found this one to be a lot of work. It will make a good weekend dinner but is too much for a weeknight. My family enjoyed it so I will definitely make it again. I also suggest putting a note at the beginning of the recipe for people to start their rice!
Loved the flavor!
Couple tips…
1. I toasted the sesame seeds in my air fryer for about 4 minutes.
2. I used frozen broccoli florets. I just thawed them in the microwave for 4 minutes. Worked great.
Very tasty 😋 doesn’t even taste diet friendly. Will definitely make again!
I made this several times this week 2 ways, originally with the beef and again with tofu for my vegetarian friends. It was delicious both ways. I substituted maple syrup for brown sugar and used grated jarred ginger, not pickled.
Definitely a hit!
This was delicious and I wish I had doubled the recipe! My fiancé loved it, although we love every recipe I’ve ever tried from Skinnytaste! Thank you for sharing!
A+ just added a little more of the seasonings listed, but garlic salt and paprika
I make this all the time!!! We no longer order this when we go out for Asian foold
My kid doesn’t eat anything except for fruit, yogurt, and Mac & cheese. Today this got 2 thumbs up and he asked for seconds. That’s a winner for us
Awesome!!
Good recipe but I agree too salty. I am Chinese and grew up eating my Dads version. I would suggest using 1/2 cup chicken stock, 2 -3 tablespoons of soy, and 2 tablespoons of Shaoxing wine or dry sherry along with the sugar and cornstarch for the sauce instead. Thanks for all the great recipes, Gina!
This was great, thanks for the recipe!
Super easy to make, which is what I was looking for. Loved it. I read about the “salty” comments, so I substituted 1/4 of the soy sauce for teriyaki and turned out pretty good. All and all, very good. Thank you!!
I made this tonight for dinner for the next couple of days and I have to say this is outside of my normal meal prep and OMG it is so good. I didn’t low sodium soy sauce and will make sure I have that next time I make this. First time cooking with fresh ginger! Thanks for the recipe.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I still haven’t received the last item from my last order
This was SO, SO good! My son loves take out Beef and Broccoli, and this was way better. Flank steak at my grocery store was too $$ for me ($16 a pound or so), so I bought sirloin steak and sliced it very thinly. I’m going to make Chicken and Broccoli this week following the same recipe.
I followed the directions, to the T, including thinly slicing flank steak (at an angle, against the grain) and blanching the [fresh] broccoli that I made into florets before cooking. This dish came out AMAZING! I didn’t think it was too salty, if anything, I added a little salt to the steak out of fear that it could turn out bland. I had a lot of ‘steak juice’ left in my wok when I cooked it, so I poured it out before cooking the onions. This will definitely be added to my Skinnytaste Recipes Rotation. I’ve yet to be disappointed by anything I’ve made by Gina. 🙂
This was a huge hit. Entire family loved it. My husband said it was the best Asian dish he has ever had! Will definitely be a regular in our house.
I made this for dinner and LOVED it. Wanted to use a small steak that I had, it worked out just fine. We don’t have any good Chinese restaurants where I live. This felt like such a treat! Thank s Gina!
Glad you enjoyed it!
So good! I reduced the amount of soy sauce based on other comments, and also used petite sirloin steak since that’s what I had. Delicious.
Just made this tonight with 2 strip steaks (all I had) and it was fantastic! I don’t think I’ll be able to eat take out broccoli beef again!
This recipe is fantastic! I use the two pack of filets from Trader Joe’s and serve it over rice made in the instant pot. It’s like having take out from a local spot. So delish and easy! It’s in our monthly rotation.
My family (kids included) loved this dish! I was nervous reading the other comments about saltiness, but I did not find this to be an issue. It is on the saltier side, but what American chinese food isn’t 🙂 Be sure to slice the beef thin and don’t let it cook the whole way through the first round, made for very tender meat. Will definitely make this again!
This was such an easy, inexpensive, and MUCH healthier version of one of my favorite Asian takeout dishes. Everyone in my family LOVED it! I have made other recipes of Beef with Broccoli and this one was honestly the best tasting. The only suggestion I would give to someone making this would be to use the quick velveting method of Baking Soda and Water soak for the beef. I do this for every Asian stir fry I cook. I used “Beef Stir Fry” pre-sliced meat, as they didn’t have any flank steak when I ordered, which I am sure is not as ideal as flank, and the meat was easy to bite into, not rubbery. Not having to cut the meat was a nice time saver. I will actually just plan to use that (less expensive) cut from now on!
This one is going into my regular rotation! (By request from the 11 and 13 year olds!)
Hi Gina,
I love your recipes. Thank you for all you do. I am on WW here in Canada. When I click on personal points, it opens my WW app but I can’t see how to enter the recipe. Are you able to help me?
Thanks,
Paddy
Unfortunately the links don’t work for us in Canada.
can i use frozen broccoli
If you wish
I was in somewhat of a hurry and didn’t read the comments. Oops. I agree that this is way too salty to be any good. I would not make it again, all I tasted was salt.
Can you tell me how much ginger to use if i just use ground ginger from the spice section?