Hoisin Beef Bowls
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Hoisin beef bowls are loved by adventurous and picky eaters alike! With customizable toppings, everyone gets to build their own bowl, making it a fun and tasty dinner.
When chatting with other moms about the challenge of getting a well-balanced dinner on the table every night, they often assume that my children are good eaters. Well, I’m sorry to say: wrong! One of my kids, who shall remain nameless, tortures me every night by picking minuscule specks of onions, garlic, or whatever else out of her food. So whenever I find a new recipe that my whole family loves, I’m not just happy…I’m ecstatic.
These Asian-flavored hoisin beef bowls are a godsend: not only do they appeal to kids and adults alike, but they can also be made in just 30 minutes using ordinary supermarket ingredients. And the beauty of “bowls” is that everyone can create their own. Like it plain? Go for it. Want to dress it up with scallions, crunchy veggies, and cashews? You do you. Eating low-carb? Skip the rice and spoon the beef into lettuce cups. I promise, you can’t go wrong!
Table of Contents
“Yes – all 5 family members enjoyed this! It’s a rarity to be celebrated.”
What You’ll Need To Make Hoisin Beef Bowls
- Ground beef: Serves as the main protein; using 90% keeps the dish relatively lean and eliminates the need to drain any fat after browning.
- Baking soda: Acts as a tenderizer for the beef and also aids with browning.
- Hoisin sauce: Infuses the dish with rich, sweet, and savory flavors. Use a good-quality brand, such as Lee Kum Kee or Kikkoman.
- Soy sauce: Provides savory, umami flavor.
- Tomato paste: Adds depth and richness to the sauce, contributing a subtle sweetness and a hint of acidity.
- Asian sesame oil: Imparts a distinct nutty aroma and flavor, characteristic of Asian cuisine.
- Sugar: Balances the salty, savory, and spicy flavors by adding a touch of sweetness.
- Red pepper flakes: Infuse the dish with a subtle heat and spice; feel free to adjust to taste.
- Garlic, ginger, scallions: These aromatic ingredients form the flavor base of the dish.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by mashing the ground beef with the baking soda. The baking soda raises the pH of the meat, helping to lock in moisture and make the beef melt-in-your-mouth tender.
While the baking soda works its magic, chop the ginger, garlic and scallions. Then prepare the sauce by mixing together the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, tomato paste, sesame oil, sugar and red pepper flakes.
Once the beef is tenderized, brown it in a sauté pan until almost cooked through.
Add the garlic, ginger and light scallions.
Cook for a few minutes, then add the hoisin mixture.
Stir until the beef is well-coated in the sauce and cooked through. The sprinkle with the remaining scallions.
Spoon the beef mixture over rice and sprinkle with sesame seeds, shredded veggies, chopped cashews, or whatever else you like!
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Hoisin Beef Bowls
Hoisin beef bowls are loved by adventurous and picky eaters alike! With customizable toppings, everyone gets to build their own bowl, making it a fun and tasty dinner.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds 90% lean ground beef
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- 6 tablespoons hoisin sauce, best quality such as Lee Kum Kee or Kikkoman (use gluten-free if needed)
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce (use gluten-free if needed)
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger (see note)
- 5 scallions, sliced, light and dark green parts separated
For Serving
- Rice
- Chopped cashews
- Sesame seeds
- Shredded veggies, such as carrots, lettuce or bell peppers
Instructions
- In a large bowl, using your hands, mash the beef with the baking soda. Let it sit on the counter for 20-25 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, tomato paste, sesame oil, sugar, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
- Once the beef is "treated" and ready to cook, heat the vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Brown the beef, stirring frequently and breaking into pieces, until just slightly pink, about 5 minutes. (I don't drain the fat - there's not that much and it adds flavor.)
- Add the garlic, ginger, and light scallions. Cook, stirring frequently, until softened, a few minutes.
- Add the reserved hoisin sauce mixture and cook until the beef is well-coated and cooked through, about a minute. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Gently stir in the remaining scallions and spoon the beef into bowls over rice. Top with sesame seeds, chopped cashews, and shredded veggies, if you like.
- Note: To get this dish done in 30 minutes, chop the garlic, ginger, and scallions while the meat is being treated with baking soda.
- Note: Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger here.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The meat mixture can be frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 347
- Fat: 19 g
- Saturated fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 11 g
- Sugar: 6 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 32 g
- Sodium: 979 mg
- Cholesterol: 99 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Comments
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Quick, easy, and very good. Also saves well.
Love it! I could eat this everyday. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
I have made this recipe repeatedly since I first found it sometime in 2019, and now it’s gotten to where it has become a “comfort food” for me. I love it because it freezes well (there’s only one of me), is very tasty as-is (no tweaks), and nicely versatile. When I need something warm and comfortable, this not only is that but leaves me feeling that way. I’ve also found that doubling the sauce works well for saturating the rice and extending the tastiness profile.
Highly recommend this recipe!!
So good! I usually use ground turkey and add in some veggies (carrots, cauliflower, red bell pepper) while it simmers. Make the sauce exactly as written. Top w crushed peanuts and sometimes serve over just chopped romaine lettuce. Really yummy.
Excellent. Thank you. Tenderizing ground beef with baking soda really did make a difference! Followed directions exactly and it was wonderful.
So many topping extras you can use.
Again, thanks.
Has anyone tried this with steak, rather than ground beef? The flavor was great, but I’m not a huge fan of ground beef with Asian…just doesn’t go well together for me. I also might try serving this over soba or rice noodles, rather than rice, since my kids love noodles.
Hi Jenn! I’ve been using a different recipe because I didn’t see this on here until the other day and of çourse your version is better! I like to put sesame seeds and furikake seasoning on top!
This recipe isn’t found when you type hamburger or rice bowl into search, needs tagging!
I second that suggestion! Made this dish a few years ago; so delicious! We gently press down the cooked rice into a lightly oiled skillet and cook the bottom to a light crisp, then top it off with the meat, assorted veggies (we like cooked spinach or bok choy, shitake mushrooms, shredded carrots and cucumbers), sauce and a fried egg. Even my Japanese husband, whose work takes him all across Asia, loves it; a take on Korean bibimbap! So, we had a hankering for it the other day but I couldn’t find my printed recipe anywhere. Knew I had found the recipe here, so put every word I could think of into the search box (rice, rice bowl, Asian, Asian bowl to name a few) and nothing came up! Finally did find it bookmarked in my recipe folder. Phew! Highly recommend this delicious, quick and easy, very tasty dish!
This was quite good and my family loved it. Only giving 4 stars because OUAC has set the bar so high in general, and this wasn’t my favorite. The flavor was good but wasn’t as punchy as I expected it to be–a little bland even. Like I said, was a pleaser, but I don’t think I’ll be adding this to my go-to rotation. Made as written.
This was soooo amazing! I even made extra sauce and added it to chicken and lo mein noodles for the kids. It was better than most of what we get when we go out for Asian food! I added carrots and zucchini in during the cooking process and added fresh jalapeños at the end. So tasty!
Delicious. Followed recipe as written but without sugar as others suggested. Topped with slivered carrots, cabbage, green onion greens and cashews. Great flavors and textures. Hubby highly suggested to add this to meal planning. Thanks for great recipe.