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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.
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
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
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
This recipe is only 397 calories per serving.
What To Serve With Beef And Broccoli
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
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Other Recipes You Might Like
Beef and Broccoli
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:
- 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon rice wine , or sherry
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil, optional
- 3 dashes white pepper
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 4 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Marinate the beef with all the Marinade ingredients for about 15 minutes.
- Bring the water to a boil and add a few drops of oil. Blanch the broccoli florets in the hot water for 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 it is 70% cooked. Remove from the heat and set aside.
- Heat the remaining oil in a wok or skillet over high heat. Add the ginger and stir-fry until fragrant. Transfer the beef to the wok or skillet and stir-fry until cooked through and the center of the meat is no longer pink, about 1-2 minutes. Add the broccoli and then the sauce, stirring to combine the ingredients well.
- As soon as the sauce thickens, remove from the heat and serve immediately.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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.
Awesome thanks so much for trying my recipe! You won’t find better recipes elsewhere.
Tried this recipe and its really good! One of the best!
Very delicious
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!!
This is the best beef and broccoli I have ever had. We no longer eat take out.
Awesome thanks for trying my recipe. Please try more recipes on my site: https://rasamalaysia.com/recipe-index-gallery/
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!
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! :)
Is Mirrin ok to substitute? What is the difference?
Mirin is sweet rice wine.
Looking for meat egg rolls recipe please. Thank you.
Hi Diana, please try my spring rolls recipe here: https://rasamalaysia.com/spring-rolls/
This is truly the BEST recipe!!!
Thanks Kris, please try more recipes on my site: https://rasamalaysia.com/recipe-index-gallery/
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.
The cornstarch part is velveting.
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 !!
Thanks.
Hi Debby,
I had the same question. Process is explained on her site here: https://rasamalaysia.com/how-to-tenderize-meat/
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.
Hi Kate, please try more recipes on my site, they are all very good: https://rasamalaysia.com/recipe-index-gallery/