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A few readers emailed me about Chinese asparagus beef recipe, one of the more popular beef recipes you can order at Chinese restaurants in the United States. Asparagus is a great vegetable to cook, especially with the protein of your choice, be it chicken, beef, or shrimp.
I love the idea of asparagus beef, in a savory sauce, with some red bell peppers, and hence this asparagus beef recipe that goes very well with steamed white or brown nice.
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One of the common mistakes of Chinese stir-fry is the sauce—gloppy, gooey, and starchy brown sauce that makes the entire dish unappetizing. The best Chinese stir-fries should be light, with just the right amount of sauce coating the beef or chicken.
The beef should be sliced against the grain so they are tender when cooked, and the Chinese techniques of “velveting” and marinating the protein with some cornstarch makes the meat even more juicy and tender. I discussed all the techniques of Chinese stir-frying and cooking in my cookbook Easy Chinese Recipes.
If you are interested, you can get a copy at Amazon.
Anyway, another technique of making meat (beef or chicken) extra juicy and moist is to seal in the moisture content in the meat by flash frying the meat in really hot oil, or a quick stir-fry until they are half cooked.
I always use the second method, which is outlined in the recipe section.
Here is my asparagus beef recipe. If you don’t eat beef, you can always make it with chicken or shrimp. Either way, it is a delicious dish that you and your family will enjoy.
Bon appetit!
How Many Calories per Serving?
This recipe is only 250 calories per serving.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
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Asparagus Beef
Ingredients
- 8 oz. beef, cut into thin strips
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- 6 oz. asparagus, cut into long strips
- One small red bell pepper (cut into long strips)
Marinade:
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
- 3 dashes ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce or oyster sauce
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon black/dark soy sauce for coloring purpose
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 teaspoons shaoxing wine
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Marinate the beef with all ingredients in the Marinade, for 15 minutes.
- Combine all the ingredients in the Sauce, stir and mix well, set aside.
- Heat up a wok and add 1 tablespoon oil. When the oil is fully heated, add the beef and do a few quick stirs, until the surface turns opaque and slightly charred. Transfer out and set aside.
- Clean the wok and add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. When the oil is fully heated, add the garlic and stir-fry until aromatic. Add the asparagus, stir a few times before adding the beef back into the wok.
- Add the Sauce and stir to combine well. Stir in the bell pepper and dish out to serve
Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
This recipe deliciously simple
Hi Bee, I’m from singapore and am lovin your site. Btw, it’s so cute how you say “black sauce” and no one understands that it is our (Malaysian / Singaporean) slang for dark soy sauce.
LOL yes I updated it, it was actually a typo.
Rasa, what is black sauce please? Is it black bean sauce or black vinegar sauce? My search on the internet says black bean but my local grocer did not have it. I put a bit of black vinegar in and we will see what happens tonight. Both are a bit sour if remember correctly.
Rasa, what is black sauce? Is it black bean sauce or black vinegar sauce? My search on the internet says black bean but my local grocer did not have it. I put a bit of black vinegar in and we will see what happens tonight. Both are a bit sour if remember correctly.
Hi Chris, oops, it was a typo, it is dark/black soy sauce.
Thank you. It was good as I made it but I might cut down on the cornstarch in the sauce as it was a bit thick. I added more water which helped but I also added a bit of soy sauce at the end and it was a bit salty. My fault.
At the portion level, I added about a half teaspoon of Sambal to kick up the heat. Yummy!
Sounds great.
Yes.
what is the black sauce?
are you talking about THICK SOY SAUCE?
Yes, dark soy sauce it was a typo.
I made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! I prepared it with chicken, added mushrooms, used a green pepper vs red, and had to substitute gin for the wine due to not having any. I will definitely be making this dish again soon! Thanks so much for sharing!
Black sauce? I’m familiar with lots of Asian ingredients, but never heard of black sauce. What is the base of this sauce?
Typo, black soy sauce.
Thank you, Bee, for the nice recipe. Have a Sunny Day!
Thanks Liz.
Loving the new blog layout, Bee! xo
Thanks Kiran.