Beef and Broccoli
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Tender strips of steak with crisp broccoli in a rich brown sauce, beef with broccoli is a weeknight favorite.
Beef and broccoli, or tender strips of steak and crisp broccoli florets in a rich brown sauce, is a popular Chinese restaurant dish, but it’s easy to make at home too. At most American Chinese restaurants, the dish is made with flank steak that has been tenderized with a baking soda solution and marinated, but when I make beef and broccoli at home, I prefer to use flat iron steak. It’s an affordable cut of meat that does not require tenderizing or marinating, and it’s ideal for high-heat, quick-cooking methods like sautéing. This recipe comes together in just 40 minutes with ingredients found at most supermarkets. Make some rice and dinner is done!
What you’ll need to make Beef and Broccoli
Step-by-step Instructions
Begin by slicing the beef into 1/4-inch slices. Add 1 tablespoon each soy sauce and Chinese rice wine (or dry sherry) and let marinate while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
While the beef marinates, chop the scallions, garlic, and ginger. It’s important to do this before you start cooking because the dish cooks very quickly.
Next, prepare the sauce by combining the the remaining 3 tablespoons of soy sauce with the cornstarch, and stir with a fork until the cornstarch is dissolved. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry), oyster sauce, chicken broth, sugar, and sesame oil. Stir and set aside.
When you’re ready to cook, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large sauté pan or wok over high heat until smoking. Add the broccoli and stir-fry for 30 seconds, then add the water. Cover the pan with a lid (or tightly with foil) and lower the heat to medium; steam the broccoli until tender-crisp, about 2 minutes, then transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
Wipe any excess water out of the pan. Increase the heat to high and heat another tablespoon of oil in the pan until smoking. Add half of the beef, so that it is in a single layer. Cook without moving until the beef is well seared, about 1-1/2 minutes. Continue cooking while stirring until the beef is lightly cooked but still pink in spots, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate. Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan and heat until smoking. Put in the remaining beef and cook without moving until the beef is well seared, about 1-1/2 minutes.
Next, add the garlic, ginger, and scallion whites. Cook, stirring constantly with the beef, for about 30 seconds. Return the reserved beef and broccoli to the pan, along with the reserved sauce and scallion greens.
Bring to a boil and cook, tossing and stirring constantly until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 45 seconds. Serve with rice and enjoy.
Note: The sauce for this recipe (not the method) is adapted from one of my favorite food columns, The Food Lab on Serious Eats by J. Kenji López-Alt.
Video Tutorial
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Beef and Broccoli
Tender strips of steak with crisp broccoli in a rich brown sauce, beef with broccoli is a weeknight favorite.
Ingredients
- 1 pound flat iron steak, cut into ¼-inch thick strips (flank steak, skirt steak or hanger steak may be substituted, but won't be as tender)
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup Shaoxing wine (Chinese rice wine) or dry sherry
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- ¼ cup oyster sauce
- ⅓ cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon Asian/toasted sesame oil
- 4 scallions, whites finely sliced, greens cut into ½-inch segments on the diagonal, reserved separately
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh ginger (see note)
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 pound bite-size broccoli florets, from about 1½ pounds broccoli crowns
- ⅓ cup water
- Rice, for serving
Instructions
- Combine the beef with 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce and 1 tablespoon of the Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry) in a bowl and toss to coat. Let marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature or 1 hour in the refrigerator.
- Meanwhile, combine the remaining 3 tablespoons of soy sauce with the cornstarch and stir with a fork until the cornstarch is dissolved. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry), oyster sauce, chicken broth, sugar, and sesame oil. Stir and set aside.
- Combine the scallion whites, garlic and ginger in a bowl and set aside.
- When you're ready to cook, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large sauté pan or wok over high heat until smoking. Add the broccoli and stir-fry for 30 seconds, then add the water. Cover the pan with a lid (or tightly with foil) and lower the heat to medium; steam the broccoli until tender-crisp, about 2 minutes, then transfer to a paper towel–lined plate.
- Wipe any excess water out of the pan. Increase the heat to high and heat another tablespoon of oil in the pan until smoking. Add half of the beef, so that it is in a single layer, and cook without moving until the beef is well seared, about 1½ minutes. Continue cooking while stirring until the beef is lightly cooked but still pink in spots, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan and heat until smoking. Add the remaining beef and cook without moving until the beef is well seared, about 1½ minutes. Add the scallion whites, garlic and ginger mixture and cook, stirring constantly with the beef, for about 30 seconds.
- Return the reserved beef and broccoli to the pan, along with the reserved sauce and scallion greens. Bring to boil and cook, tossing and stirring constantly until the sauce is lightly thickened, about 45 seconds. Transfer to a serving platter and serve with rice.
- Note: Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger here.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 369
- Fat: 21g
- Saturated fat: 5g
- Carbohydrates: 17g
- Sugar: 6g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 28g
- Sodium: 1523mg
- Cholesterol: 77mg
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.
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Very good. It’s a little difficult to find a flat iron steak, so I asked the butcher what to substitute that would be close and he recommended a top sirloin, so I went with that. It was great. I served it with your delicious Perfect Basmati Rice. It sort of needs the rice to mute/blend the flavors a little bit, if you try the beef/broccoli by itself the flavor is a little strong (fine for me, but both kids said it was better with the rice). Great recipe, thank you! Love your website, the recipes are complicated enough that I feel like a “chef” but not too much so!
This was really good, so much better than any takeout I’ve gotten in the past. Added a couple Tbsps of sambal oelek for my heat-loving family. Thanks so much for another great recipe!
This was such a delicious recipe. I used venison steaks because that’s what I had, and I added mushrooms, but otherwise followed the recipe and it was such a winner!
This is a favorite of my grandchildren ages 13 and 15. Have made it several times for them and now that they are learning to cook with me they can help with the prep and the finishing. Our whole family feels that the broccoli should be doubled in the recipe. I did that last time and it was perfect. Thanks!
Hi! Every recipe of yours that I’ve tried is fabulous. The Beef with Broccoli is a family favorite-I make it a few times a month. Didn’t change a thing, it’s perfect as it is. All every your recipes are delicious!!
This is so delicious. The first time I made it, my husband told me to keep this in rotation. I’ve made it a few times now and follow it exactly and it comes out great every time. I do use skirt steak since that is our favorite for meals like this. The key is to really cook it in batches, as Jenn instructs. It keeps the crunch in the broccoli, which I prefer, and cooking the beef in 2 separate batches also keeps the nice flavorful browning that really goes a long way. It rivals any Chinese restaurant beef and broccoli dish.
We love Asian food my fiancé and I looked for something that we could cook at home instead of eating out all the time. This is now a staple in our home!
LOVED this recipe! Better than any restaurant! The only major change I made was slow cooking the beef in the oven (at 180 degrees for 5 hours or so). I used flank steak, and it was delicious. Essentially let beef marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature, then added it to the rest of the ingredients (except broccoli) and cooked in a stoneware pot in oven . I’ve made this at least three times since, always doubling the recipe so we have leftovers. I just steam some broccoli on the side and serve it with hot rice. You can also toss some baby carrots (in a separate container in the oven) and cook for the last two hours the beef is cooking.
Hi Jenn,
This recipe is such at hit at my house! After eating it tonight, my 3 year old asked me if I could make it again…for lunch tomorrow!
Quick question – if I wanted to prep this a few days in advance, could I marinate the meat that long or should I do it the night I am cooking it? I think I can prep everything else in advance. Thanks!
Elizabeth
Hi Elizabeth, So glad this is a hit! Because the wine in the marinade is a bit acidic, I wouldn’t suggest marinating this for an extended period of time – sorry!
Straight from Facebook last night after making and eating this for dinner! Thank you Jenn!
As a busy mom, working full time and commuting I have found this food blog to be extremely helpful. Real food that is both both basic enough for an almost 5 year old and exciting enough for a plus 45 year old. I have made no fewer than 10 recipes and each one gets rave reviews! I have had to make basic substitutions based on a picky toddlers likes but a piece of cake compared to the alternative. We made beef and broccoli tonight and it got a thumbs up!