Beef Stir Fry is loaded with mushrooms, zucchini, and bell peppers. The easy 3-ingredient beef stir fry sauce adds amazing Asian BBQ flavor. Serve this with a side of steamy white rice and you’ll satisfy any craving for takeout.
Just like Chicken Stir Fry, or Shrimp Fried Rice, this is a one-pan, easy dinner that is better than going out.
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Beef Stir Fry Recipe
Stir fry is the ultimate quick dinner. This recipe is cooked in just 20 minutes. High-heat cooking results in tender and juicy beef caramelized with the beef stir fry sauce. This recipe moves fast so be sure to have all of your ingredients sliced up and ready to go before you fire up the stove.
I learned how to make this recipe on a blogging retreat hosted by Camp Chef. One of their chefs was cooking for everyone Hibachi style and when I inquired about the sauce, he didn’t hesitate to share it with me. It shocked me that it could be so simple with just 3 ingredients, but so tasty! I couldn’t wait to recreate this easy recipe in my backyard. I have since used a variation for this sauce to make a Ground Beef Stir Fry, and it worked amazingly well.
What Kind of Beef is Used for Stir Fry?
Good news: you don’t need the most expensive cut of beef for tender beef stir fry. Top sirloin is our favorite beef for stir fry because it is relatively inexpensive and produces juicy results). These are generally the best beef cuts for stir fry:
- Top Sirloin Steak (or go-to)
- Chuck Steak
- Ribeye
- Tri-tip
- Flank Steak
How do you Ensure Tender Beef?
The right cut (see recommendations above) is critical. Also, be sure to:
- Thinly Slice your beef
- Cut steak against the grain
- Sear over high heat (sealing in the juices)
- Don’t crowd the pan which cools the pan quickly and results in chewy beef
The Best Beef Stir Fry Sauce
A great stir fry is all in the sauce (which is why our Beef and Broccoli is so popular)! The ingredients for this beef stir fry sauce will surprise you and you probably already have them in the refrigerator. The combination is sweet, savory and smoky. It caramelizes on the beef for a tantalizing Asian BBQ flavor.
Keep in mind if you use a sweet BBQ sauce, the sauce will be considerably sweeter which is why we opted to use an original BBQ sauce. Also, use Tamari soy sauce to make this a gluten-free beef stir fry!
Which Vegetables are Best for Stir Fry?
You can change up the vegetables for variety or to use up what you have on hand. Veggies are important for bulking up a stir fry and making it a meal in one pan. The best vegetables for stir fry cook fast when thinly sliced. You can substitute with any of these:
- Bell Peppers
- Mushrooms
- Zucchini (green or yellow squash)
- Snap peas
- Carrots (sliced into matchsticks)
- Onion
- Asparagus
- Broccoli cut into florets
How to Make Stir-Fry Sauce
1. Stir together 3 Tbsp BBQ sauce, 3 Tbsp real maple syrup and 2 Tbsp soy sauce. Set aside.
How to Make Beef Stir Fry
1. Heat a large heavy pan or wok over high heat with 1 Tbsp oil. Add thinly sliced beef to the hot pan in a single layer and sauté undisturbed 2-3 mins. Stir and sauté 2 min or until nearly cooked through. Season lightly with salt and pepper, add ginger and garlic and sauté 1 minute.
2. Drizzle beef with sauce to taste (I added 5 Tbsp) and stir-fry another 1 min or until fully cooked through. Remove beef to a plate and cover to keep warm. Wipe the pan clean with a damp paper towel.
3. Place the same pan over high heat and add 1 Tbsp oil. Once hot, add mushrooms, season lightly with salt and pepper and stir fry until golden (5 min) then remove mushrooms to the plate with beef.
4. Add 1 Tbsp oil, sliced onion and vegetables and stir fry 8 minutes or until softened and golden.
5. Combine vegetables with beef and mushrooms, drizzle in more sauce to taste (I added another 2 Tbsp) and stir fry just until hot.
Which Oil is Best for Stir Fry?
Since you are cooking over high heat, use an oil with a high smoke point. Our favorite is extra light olive oil (we use it for everything from baking to stir-fries because it is neutral in flavor and has a high smoke point). Other good options include canola oil, grape-seed oil, avocado oil or peanut oil.
You’ll find this Beef Stir Fry recipe on your list of recipes to repeat. It’s especially fun to cook it over a flat cooktop outdoors, Hibachi style!
More Asian Copycat Recipes
We love to recreate our favorite restaurant copycat recipes because it is so easy to make them at home and is often healthier. From Fresh Spring Rolls to crispy Egg Rolls and all kinds of stir-fry recipes, I hope you find some new favorites here.
- Kung Pao Chicken
- General Tso’s Chicken
- Vegetable Stir Fry
- Egg Roll in a Bowl
- Chicken Chow Mein
- Teriyaki Meatballs
Easy Beef Stir-Fry Recipe with 3 Ingredient Sauce
Ingredients
Ingredients for Beef Stir-Fry:
- 1 lb Top sirloin steak, thinly sliced
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 1 medium yellow zucchini, sliced on the diagonal
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 1/2 lb mushrooms, thin sliced
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
- 1/2 Tbsp sesame seeds, for garnish
- 3 Tbsp Oil to Saute, *
Ingredients for Asian BBQ Sauce:
- 3 Tbsp original BBQ Sauce, we used Stubbs brand
- 3 Tbsp Maple Syrup
- 2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce, we used Tamari brand – gluten free
Instructions
- Stir together the 3 sauce ingredients and set aside.
- Heat a large heavy pan or wok over high heat and add 1 Tbsp oil. When oil is hot, add beef in a single layer and sautee undisturbed 2-3 mins. Stir and sautee another 2 min or until nearly cooked through. Season lightly with salt and pepper, add ginger and garlic and sautee 1 min.
- Drizzle beef with sauce to taste (I added 5 Tbsp) and stir-fry another 1 min or until beef is fully cooked through. Remove beef to a plate and cover to keep warm. Wipe pan clean with a paper towel.
- Place clean pan over high heat and add 1 Tbsp oil. Once oil is hot, add mushrooms, season lightly with s & p and stir fry until golden (5 min). Transfer mushrooms to the plate with beef.
- Add 1 Tbsp oil along with sliced onion and veggies and stir fry about 8 min or until soft and golden.
- Combine vegetables with beef and mushrooms, drizzle in more sauce to taste (I used another 2 Tbsp) and stir fry just until hot. Serve over steamy white rice.
Notes
This recipe also works well with pork strip loin or tenderloin.
*Use a high smoke-point oil such as: extra light olive oil, avocado oil, canola.
Nutrition Per Serving
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Thanks Natasha for another delicious recipe. Tripled the recipe and forgot the sesame seeds but added crushed red pepper flakes.and it was so tasty. Will definitely add some sesame seeds as well.
I’m so happy it still worked out! Thank you for the great review, Debbie!
Oh Natasha! you are a dinner rescuer. I was googling around for a quick, easy, delish stir fry sauce and then bam!… I see yours with only 3 ingredients! The combo is perfect! Thank you!
I’m so happy you enjoyed the Stir-fry, Ena. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Where in the recipie is the onion added
Hi Inna, it goes in along with the bell peppers. I hope you love the recipe!
Tastes so good! I forgot to buy maple syrup and used pancake syrup instead (which has like only 2% maple syrup) and it was still delicious! Since don’t like the taste of ginger I just used ginger powder, just a little, on the tip of a knife…
I’m happy to hear the recipe was a success! Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers Valentina!
I made this recipe extra lean by using top sirloin (completely trimmed) & eliminated all oil, opting instead for beef broth… vege’s cooked up great! I also added a few drops of sesame oil to the marinade. Family loved it!
Yummy! I’m glad to hear the recipe was such a success. Thanks for sharing your great review with other readers Karen!
YUM! Thank you for the recipe! My family and I loved it.
You’re welcome Nicole! I’m glad to hear that! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so much for this recipe! It is the best steak stir fry I have ever made and eaten!
You’re welcome Barb! I’m happy to hear how much you love the recipe. Thanks for sharing!
Stir fry was delicious add a few more veggies to eat worth a 5 star to me!
I’m glad you enjoy it Johanne! Thanks for sharing!
Do you know the nutritional information for this recipe? Calories, fat and salt for each serving?
Due to time constraints, I don’t typically include nutritional info, but check out this nutrition analyzer – you can plug in the ingredients from any recipe, select the serving size and it will give you nutritional info, calories, etc. I hope that is helpful to you Sonja!
Love your recipes Natasha, my wife and I use them a lot, will try this one tonight, Clive.
Will rate recipe later !!
Thank you for the compliment Clive, I will be waiting for the review 😬
Hello does it have to be maple syrup?? I only have the regular syrup for pancakes and also have honey.. Would any of them work?
Hi Natasha, I haven’t experimented that way but I think it would be worth an experiment to try either one. I’d probably experiment with honey first.
Thank you for replying so fast! 🙂 I’ll let you know how it turns out 🙂
You’re welcome Natalie! Please do 🙂
My husband made this for dinner last night. It was delicious! This will be a new family favorite. Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome Nana! I’m glad to hear you’re family enjoys the recipe as much as mine does. Thanks for sharing your excellent review!
Delish everytime!!
I’m glad you enjoy the recipe Tonya! Thanks for sharing 🙂
The recipe for a stir-fry sauce I have been searching for!!!! Perfect blend of sweet and savory. Actually made this two nights in a row – we had extra rice from night 1 and enough ingredients left to make it again. I par-boiled some thinly sliced carrots before adding them into the veggie sautee. Perfection! Thanks so much!
You’re welcome Anna! I’m so glad to hear how much you love this recipe! Thanks for sharing your fantastic review!
Hi
do you have a recepie book
I LOVE ALL TOUR RECEPIES
lise
No book yet, but it’s on the to-do list.
Absolutely delish!!! We had ours with udon noodles which worked really well. Will definitely be having this again 😊
I’m happy to hear that Emily! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Hi Natasha I absolutely love the recipes I’ve tried from your blog! 💜 What can I sub for the zucchini in this recipe?
Hi Michelle, you can use zucchini instead of mushrooms – I think that would work well.
What type of pan did you use to sear the meat? I have a stainless steel pan and a cast iron that would take the high heat. Love your recipes……
Thanks Linda! This is the pan that I’m using – it is a coated cast iron pan. I would suggest using whichever one you feel is more non-stick, but either of those would work fine 🙂
Can’t wait to try it! Can I substitute the BBQ sauce with anything? I don’t have one in hand and wondering if it will still work out.
Hi Angie, I haven’t tested anything else and the BBQ sauce was a shortcut so you’ll probably have to combine several ingredients to get a similar flavor. I wish I had an easy answer for that.
Made this sauce last night to go with stir fry out of moose steak, wild bullét mushrooms, broccoli, onion, garlic, bell peppers! Was a hit with our family! No leftovers :-(.
Thank you for recreating this recipe! 5 stars!
You’re welcome Lari! No leftovers is certain success! Thanks for sharing your review 🙂
I made this last night and it wasn’t the best stir fry I’ve ever made! My picky 7 year old loved it. Thank you!
Was* the best sir fry I’ve ever made 😉
LOL! Gotcha 🙂
I enjoy your recipes very much. I thought I might share some information I looked up concerning the smoke point on oils. I like avocado oil for frying since it has a high smoke point of 520 degrees vs EVO is only 350. Ordinary Olive oil is 410 degrees.
You’re so welcome Arlene! Yes, it is so imporant to watch for the smoke point.
You’re welcome Krystal! I’m glad to hear you guys love it!! Thanks for sharing 🙂