Beef and Broccoli

4.62 from 76 votes
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Broccoli Beef  - Best homemade recipe featuring tender beef in a brown sauce. You'll never need to order it for takeout ever again, and it's healthier.

Beef and broccoli slathered in beef and broccoli sauce in a serving bowl.
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Broccoli Beef

Beef and broccoli is the most popular Chinese beef stir-fry dish in the United Status. It’s the poster child of American Chinese food so much as that the most popular item in Panda Express is this dish!

The rich brown sauce with tender beef and healthy broccoli has captured the hearts and palate of many people. This recipe is from my Easy Chinese Recipes cookbook, the best selling and top rated Chinese cookery book.

Unlike spicy Szechuan beef, beef and broccoli tastes mild with its savory sauce. It’s not spicy, hence, it’s a popular choice for everyone.

Another of my favorite beef stir fry recipe is ginger and scallion beef.

If you don’t have beef, make my classic Garlic Broccoli or Shrimp and Broccoli recipes instead!


Ingredients For The Brown Sauce

Broccoli beef stir fry Chinese-style.

There are two types of sauces in Chinese stir-fry: white sauce and brown sauce. Here are the ingredients for delicious and authentic brown sauce.

  • Soy Sauce
  • Oyster Sauce
  • Sesame Oil
  • Corn starch
  • Sugar
  • Water

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients.


Tips For The Best And Tender Broccoli Beef

Homemade beef and broccoli recipe ready to serve in a stoneware bowl.

Here are the techniques and tips used by Chinese and Cantonese chefs in the best restaurants, and I am sharing with you the secrets:

  • Cut the beef against the grain. This will ensure that the beef is tender and not rubbery.
  • Velvet the beef to make sure you have silky, smooth and tender beef. Velveting is a secret techniques used by Chinese chefs to seal in the moisture of protein while stir-frying. The key ingredients for velveting is corn starch.
  • Blanch the broccoli in hot boiling water first before stir-frying.
  • During the stir-frying process, quickly toss the broccoli with the beef. Do not overcook the broccoli.
  • The brown sauce should be light and not starchy or sticky. It should just barely coat the beef.

For perfect wok stir fries, please check out my Chinese stir-frying techniques.


Frequently Asked Questions

How many calories per serving?

This recipe is only 397 calories per serving.

Tender beef and broccoli stir fry in a Chinese bowl, with a pair of chopsticks, ready to serve.

What To Serve With Beef And Broccoli

For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.

I hope you enjoy this post as much as I do. If you try my recipe, please leave a comment and consider giving it a 5-star rating. For more easy and delicious recipes, explore my Recipe Index, and stay updated by subscribing to my newsletter and following me on FacebookPinterest, and Instagram for new updates.


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4.62 from 76 votes

Beef and Broccoli

Broccoli Beef – best and easiest homemade beef and broccoli in brown sauce. You'll never need another broccoli beef takeout. 
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 2 people
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Ingredients  

  • 8 oz (230g) beef tenderloin, flank steak or flap meat, cut into pieces
  • 6 oz (170g) broccoli florets
  • water, for boiling
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons oil
  • 2- inches (5cm) ginger, peeled and sliced

Marinade:

Sauce:

Instructions 

  • Marinate the beef with all the ingredients for the Marinade, about 15 minutes.
  • Bring the water to boil and add a few drops of oil. Blanch the broccoli florets in the hot water, about 10 seconds. Remove the broccoli immediately with a strainer or slotted spoon, draining the excess water. Set aside.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a wok or skillet over high heat. Stir-fry the beef until 70% cooked. Dish out and set aside.
  • Heat the remaining oil in a wok or skillet over high heat. Add the ginger and stir-fry until aromatic. Transfer the beef into the wok or skillet and stir-fry until the beef is cooked through and the center of the meat is no longer pink, about 1-2 minutes. Add the broccoli and then the Sauce, stir to combine the ingredients well.
  • As soon as the sauce thickens, dish out and serve immediately.

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 2people, Calories: 397kcal, Carbohydrates: 15g, Protein: 29g, Fat: 25g, Saturated Fat: 17g, Cholesterol: 68mg, Sodium: 1091mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 3g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Please rate and comment below!

About Bee Yinn Low

Bee is a recipe developer and best-selling cookbook author, sharing easy, quick, and delicious Asian and American recipes since 2006. With a strong following of almost 2 million fans online, her expertise has been featured in major publications, TV and radio programs, and live cooking demos throughout the United States and Asia.

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Recipe Rating





130 Comments

  1. Polly says:

    Thank you so much for this beef recipe and your fried rice.
    My husband loved it too. I have tried some recipes but this made my venison tenderloin so tender. Thanks again.

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Awesome thanks so much for trying my recipe! You won’t find better recipes elsewhere.

  2. Adrian says:

    Tried this recipe and its really good! One of the best!

  3. Brigitte De bal says:

    5 stars
    Very delicious

  4. Yeh Ximin says:

    5 stars

  5. Jen says:

    5 stars
    I have tried so many Asian recipes in the past and they always fall short. This was delicious. The first time I’ve made a recipe like this that was better than take out! Thank you!!

  6. Kimberly Newton Walker says:

    This is the best beef and broccoli I have ever had. We no longer eat take out.

  7. Mary Gallo says:

    Hi, perfect every time, I double the sauce for my family. After making this for many years according to your recipe, this time I added 1/2 tsp of shiaxhou wine and dry sherry. It adds that ‘take out tang’. Thank you for providing so many authentic recipes. I think I have cooked every one of your recipes and my Chinese-Amercian friend, who admits she can’t cook, tells me I cook better than her mother. So I gave her your URL and she has been trying!! Thank you so very much!

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Hi Mary, awww, your comment just made my day. Yes, shaoxing wine is awesome, it just adds that special nuance. I am so happy that you tired all my recipes. Thanks again and happy cooking! :)

      1. Mark says:

        Is Mirrin ok to substitute? What is the difference?

        1. Rasa Malaysia says:

          Mirin is sweet rice wine.

  8. Diana weaver says:

    Looking for meat egg rolls recipe please. Thank you.

  9. Kris says:

    This is truly the BEST recipe!!!

      1. Debby says:

        In several of your stir fry recipes you mention velveting but I haven’t seen the procedure mentioned in the recipes. Is this step supposed to be done before beginning the actual recipe? If so, that would mean the meat would have cornstarch on it before placing it in the marinade. Does that cornstarch affect the thickness of the marinade or how the recipe turns out? I would love to do the velveting step I just don’t know at what point to do it.

        1. Rasa Malaysia says:

          The cornstarch part is velveting.

          1. L K Lee says:

            My hubby n 2 girls really enjoy this recipe & it is as easy as 123 to make. This will be our favourite for a long time to come. Thanks very much !!

            1. Rasa Malaysia says:

              Thanks.

  10. Kate says:

    Thank you for a great recipe. This is the first time making beef and broccoli that my beef came out tender. My husband even notice the difference and was like wow, this is very good. Will definitely be making again.