Beef and Broccoli is an easy, 1-pan, 30-minute meal that’s loaded with fresh broccoli, tender beef, and the best stir-fry sauce. This Beef and Broccoli Recipe definitely satisfies the craving for takeout. Watch the video recipe below and see how easy it is!
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Helpful Reader Review
“Oh my goodness! The hype is real, y’all!! I made this tonight for the first time and my husband raved and raved. It was not difficult at all. I followed the recipe exactly, using flank steak and following the tip of adding water to make the broccoli a little more tender. My only regret is I did not double the recipe is there are no leftovers…” – Hannah ★★★★★
Beef and Broccoli Video
I hope this Beef Broccoli Stir Fry video recipe becomes a favorite for you. It’s such a treat to enjoy home cooking when you’re on the go.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
I developed this recipe years ago as a copycat for the Panda Express, P.F. Changs and Cheesecake Factory Beef and Broccoli – the sauce here really makes the dish! It satisfies my family’s frequent cravings, but I think this homemade version has better flavors and textures. It also has better ingredients, so I feel really good about serving it to my family. I make sure to add plenty of broccoli for a balanced meal, and honestly, I’ve never seen my kids eat broccoli so fast!
This is also a versatile dish – you can add your favorite vegetables to this recipe (see ingredient variations below). I love serving this over cooked white rice, but have gotten creative over the years and sometimes add noodles for a Beef Broccoli Ramen Stir Fry that is a meal in one dish (add that to next weeks meal plan).
Ingredients
This recipe follows my mantra – ‘sometimes the simplest recipes are the best.’ A good stir fry should be simple. Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy broccoli beef.
- Beef – Flank Steak is the best cut of beef for stir fry because it’s tender, lean, and easy to chew. More options include: Top Sirloin Steak, Top Round Steak, or Tri-Tip Steak. Ribeye also works for extra flavor and richness.
- Broccoli – Fresh broccoli florets are best. I avoid using frozen broccoli because it gets mushy, releases liquid and dilutes the sauce, making it bland. You can also change out the vegetables – try snap peas, bell peppers, carrots, and even mushrooms.
- Sauce – an easy and perfect blend of garlic, ginger, soy sauce, water, brown sugar, pepper, sesame oil and corn starch to thicken up the sauce.
Natasha’s Tips for Thin-Sliced Beef
If you freeze your steak for about 30 minutes, it will be much easier to make thin and even slices because it stays in place. Slice against the grain, between 1/8″ to 1/4″ thick – the thinner you shave the beef, the better – it cooks faster, stays tender, and absorbs the sauce better.
The Best Stir Fry Sauce for Beef and Broccoli
Many stir fry recipes have gone wrong with a poorly made sauce. I tested this recipe over and over until I arrived at the perfect balance of sweet and savory. For the best stir fry sauce:
- Use low sodium soy sauce, or add to taste (or try Gluten Free Tamari)
- Use the right amount of fresh ginger – it has strong flavor so don’t overdo it.
- Do not skip the sesame oil as it gives authentic flavor
- Simmer sauce at least 3 minutes to mellow out garlic and ginger
- For a thinner sauce, add 2 Tbsp water at the end
How to Make Beef and Broccoli
This recipe moves fast and comes together in 1 skillet and 5 easy steps, so you want to have all of your ingredients prepped and ready to go before you fire up the stove. It is just 6 steps in one skillet!
- Slice beef strips
- Make stir fry sauce
- Cook broccoli and remove from skillet.
- Cook beef
- Add stir fry sauce and return broccoli to the pan
Tips for the Best Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry
Here are my best tips to achieve a perfectly cooked stir fry with tender beef and perfectly cooked broccoli:
- Start with the right cut of beef (see ingredients section above) and thinly sliced steak for quick and even cooking.
- Add steak to a HOT skillet to sear and seal in the juices
- Use Fresh broccoli (not frozen)
- Don’t overcrowd the pan or it will cool the pan resulting in steam cooked beef.
Make Ahead and Storage
This saucy beef and broccoli recipe reheats really well so it’s perfect for weekly meal prep and to-go lunches for school and work.
- Prep Ahead: slice your beef, prepare the broccoli and make the sauce the day before and store them all separately until ready to cook.
- Storage: Once the beef and broccoli has cooled to room temperature, cover and refrigerate 3-4 days per USDA guidelines for storing cooked beef. For Meal prep, store in individual containers to reheat portions.
- Freezing: You can freeze but the texture will suffer since broccoli can get mushy when thawed.
- To Reheat: set portions in a skillet and stir fry over medium heat until hot. Add a splash of water to loosen up the sauce.
Beef and Broccoli is delicious and protein-packed dinner and you’ll love how quick and easy it is to make. Stir-fry recipes, such as our Ground Beef Stir Fry, Vegetable Stir Fry, and Shrimp Fried Rice, have become go-to’s because they are fast and healthier than going out.
Beef and Broccoli Recipe
Ingredients
Beef and Broccoli Ingredients:
- 1 lb flank steak*, very thinly sliced into bite-sized strips
- 2 Tbsp olive oil, (or vegetable oil), divided
- 1 lb fresh broccoli*, (cut into 6 cups of florets)
- 2 tsp sesame seeds, optional garnish
Stir Fry Sauce Ingredients:
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated (loosely packed)
- 2 tsp garlic, grated (from 3 cloves)
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 6 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce, (or GF Tamari)
- 3 Tbsp packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 Tbsp corn starch
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 Tbsp sesame oil
Instructions
- Prep: Start cooking white rice first so it's ready when the stir fry is done. Cover and freeze steak 30 minutes for easier slicing, then thinly slice against the grain.
- Make the Sauce: Combine all stir fry sauce ingredients in a bowl, stir well to dissolve the sugar, and set aside.
- Cook Broccoli: Place a large skillet over medium heat and add 1 Tbsp oil. Add broccoli florets and sauté 4-5 minutes, partially covered with lid, stirring or tossing several times until broccoli is bright green and crisp-tender then remove from pan. Tip: If you prefer softer broccoli, add 2 Tbsp water before covering with the lid and it will steam cook the broccoli.
- Cook Beef: Increase heat to high heat and add 1 Tbsp oil. Add beef in a single layer and sauté 2 minutes per side or just until cooked through. Quickly pull out a piece to test for doneness.
- Add the sauce, reduce heat to medium/low and simmer 3-4 minutes. It will thicken. Add broccoli and stir to combine. Stir in 1-2 Tbsp water to thin the sauce if desired. Serve over white rice.
Notes
- More steak options include: Top Sirloin Steak, Top Round Steak, Tri-Tip Steak, or Ribeye
- Vegetables: for best results, use fresh vegetables, not frozen. You can substitute or add a variety of veggies such as snap peas, bell peppers, carrots, and even mushrooms.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
More Beef Recipes that Reheat Well
Any recipe that reheats well is a great option for meal prep, school, and work lunch. This is a great list to help you get through a busy season.
- Lasagna – beefy, cheesy, and saucy
- Beef Chili – hearty and satisfying
- Easy Taco Soup – fun for Taco Tuesday
- Spaghetti Meat Sauce – also freezes well
- Beef Stir Fry – with 3 ingredient sauce
- Meatloaf – so many uses for leftovers
- Mongolian Beef – saucy and delicious
Natasha, Love many of your recipes and make them on the regular with great praise. Consider adding the garlic and ginger to the meat at the end of sautéing (30 sec) along with 1/3 cup green onion whites. Once the sauce is added, add the green portions of the green onion… continue with your recipe. Just a suggestion, but was wonderful addition for my eaters. 🙂
Thank you for sharing that with us, Steve! I’m happy to know you’re enjoying the recipes!
I’m not even a broccoli beef fan, but this was really great!! I like the sweet and salty ratio, so don’t change it. Thanks for an easy and delicious meal!
Oh my goodness! The hype is real, y’all!! I made this tonight for the first time and my husband raved and raved. It was not difficult at all. I followed the recipe exactly, using flank steak and following the tip of adding water to make the broccoli a little more tender. My only regret is I did not double the recipe is there are no leftovers. An absolutely perfect dish. Thank you so much for this recipe
I am so happy you loved the beef and broccoli recipe!
Natasha, first, let me say I REALLY wanted to like this recipe.
We never throw food out but… We did this time.
My complaints are this: the sauce is WAY too sweet & garlicky. I love sweet AND garlic but I’m wondering if there is a typo for the brown sugar… Maybe it should be 3 teaspoons instead of 3 tablespoons? And the garlic should maybe be a little less in my opinion.
At any rate, this was just mostly too sweet.
Usually I keep my negative opinions to myself but I thought about the possibility of a typo.
Thank you for the recipe anyway as I know it’s a lot of work to create recipes & maintain a website. All the best.
Hi Cindy, normally the sauce shouldn’t be too sweet but the measurement is correct, although you can add sugar to taste if you prefer less sweetness. Did you change anything in the rest of the sauce proportions?
Beef and broccoli are great ingredients, but what’s the use in trying this recipe if one is allergic to sesame? Therefore, what can be used instead of sesame oil without detracting from the flavor?
TIA,
C.
Hello! You can try toasted sunflower oil or perilla or pumpkin oil. Hope it becomes a huge success!
Thank you for your answer.
I’ll try the recipe soon.
C.
You’re welcome! I hope you love it.
In Hawaii, this dish is super common and I’ve been looking for quite some time for a recipe that I love! This.is.it! I used roasted sesame oil since it’s what I had on hand and my 4 kids and husband loved it! They said it was a way better than Panda Express and our local Chinese restaurant! I doubled the recipe without any problems. I think cooking this dishes in parts and then putting it all together made a HUGE difference. It’s been added to our rotation for dinner! I’m also planning to film myself remaking this with credit to Natasha. I’m working on a recipe book vlog style for my children to have! I don’t give 5 stars easily and only 5 star recipes are added to my vlogs! So, thank you for this recipe!!!!
I’m so glad you love it. Thank you so much for the feedback!
Better than any restaurant Beef & Broccoli that we have ever had! Yum!!
This is fantastic so easy and tasty. I gave some to my neighbors and they said it’s better than the takeout. Definitely in my rotation.
The first time I made this, my family said how our favorite Chinese takeout place never disappoints them. They were shocked I made this myself! Ever time I make it, my family says how great it is. Seriously easy and yummy.
My daughter said she wanted beef and broccoli for dinner. I thought it would take hours to make and honestly was not sure if I could pull it off. I am so glad I decided to attempt it because it was AMAZING!! I doubled the instructions for the sauce, only because I had 2 pounds of beef. It was perfect!!
Thanks for a great recipe Natasha! The stir fry was delicious and so easy to make – great directions! It is by far our favorite! I had run out of sesame oil and substituted peanut oil which did not take away from the wonderful taste. 🙂
I’m so happy that substitution worked out and you loved it, Sandy!
Super Easy and super good !
Will make again !
This sauce was really easy and I had all the ingredients on hand, no trip to the store. The flavor was perfect! It cooked up nice and smooth, with a nice glaze to it and just thick enough. I wanted enough left overs to freeze so I doubled the ingredients and had more than enough. It made 6 – 1 1/4 cup servings before the rice.
Don’t you just love it when you have all the ingredients you need on hand? I’m so happy you loved this recipe, Maureen!
Absolutely amazing!! I make it at least once a month… thank you so much!!
This recipe is perfect! And the stir fry sauce recipe is now my go to stir fry sauce! Yum!
I would like to know instead of Sesame Oil can I use Olive oil? It gives me a bad after taste.
Hi Georgiann, I do not recommend skipping the sesame oil as it gives authentic flavor and I have not tried any substitution for it yet.
Yummy! The recipe closest to what Ingredients I already had on hand. I did add onions and instead used ribeye but the flavor of the stir fry sauce was perfect.
Is it essential to use low sodium soy sauce?
Hi Michael, we prefer it or the dish may become too salty, if you only have regular sodium on hand it will still work but you may want to use a tad less.
Easy and absolutely delicious! This recipe is better than any of my local takeout places.
Once again, you make it so easy to dazzle. There are times that I have no confidence in what I am doing, but I just follow. This recipe was amazing for us. Thank you.
That’s so great to hear, Howard!