Beef and Broccoli (Video)

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4.98 from 203 votes

A quick and easy Beef and Broccoli that's so much better than takeout!

Prep Time30

Cook Time10

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Chinese

Servings:

Author: Chris Joe

Ingredients

Beef

1 lb flank steak cut into 1/4" strips
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp neutral oil I used avocado oil
1 tbsp cornstarch

Sauce

2 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp msg optional
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tbsp shaoxing wine
1/2 tbsp cornstarch

Vegetables

1 lb broccoli cut into 2" pieces
5 cloves garlic chopped
1 tbsp ginger chopped

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Slice your beef into 1/4" strips against the grain for maximum tenderness.
Marinate beef strips with baking soda, oyster sauce, salt, oil, and cornstarch. Set aside for 15 minutes.
In a small bowl, mix together your sauce by combining light soy, dark soy, oyster sauce, sugar, white pepper, sesame oil, msg, shaoxing wine, chicken stock, and cornstarch. This will be your sauce. Set aside.
Bring a pot of water to boil and blanch your broccoli 30 seconds; drain and set aside.
Add about 4 tbsp of neutral oil to a hot pan. Sear marinated beef strips over high heat for 2-3 minutes until nicely browned. Remove and set aside.
In the same pan and oil, fry ginger and and garlic for 15 seconds. Add back your broccoli and stir fry for 30 seconds.
Add back the beef followed by the premixed sauce and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly and coated the beef and broccoli.
Garnish with sesame seeds. Serve with freshly steamed white rice and enjoy!

Notes

Broccoli:

I recommend you avoid the pre-cut broccoli and get crowns from the store that you can cut yourself. It's important that the broccoli is cut to similar sized pieces (1") so they cook evenly and are distributed equally throughout the dish. I've noticed that pre-cut broccoli range widely in size, which will result in some broccoli pieces being under-cooked, while others will be over-cooked.
I highly recommend blanching your broccoli before using it in a stir-fry (such as this dish) - the 30 seconds in hot water will help soften the vegetable (so it doesn't take too long to cook in the wok and get inadvertently soggy), brighten the color, and also keep the dish from being overwhelmed by broccoli flavor.

Steak:

Make sure you are slicing against the grain. You'll know which direction the grain is when you look at the meat - the lines will be running in one direction (the lines are the muscle fibers). Slicing against the grain is an easy way to ensure your meat will be tender. (Remember, the lines are the muscle fibers - cutting against the lines means you're cutting the long fibers, so they don't get tough when cooked!)
Don't skip the baking soda! Baking soda is commonly used in Chinese cooking to tenderize beef - it neutralizes acid and raises the pH level, which causes the meat to become more alkaline. This means the proteins INSIDE the meat will have more trouble tightening up - when the proteins can't tighten up, the meat ends up much more tender when cooked (instead of constricting together aka getting tough!)

My favorite neutral oil is avocado oil, but you can also use canola or vegetable oil! I don't use olive oil when cooking Chinese food for two reasons: 1. It has a low burning point and 2. I find that the flavor profile does not usually go with the dish.

White Pepper: I get asked all the time if you can sub black pepper for white pepper - and my answer is, it depends BUT you need to watch the ratio. White pepper has a milder flavor profile than black pepper, so I would start with less black pepper and add as you go. (But really, you should have white pepper in your pantry! It's a staple in mine!)

Dark soy sauce is thicker, darker, and sweeter (as well as has a higher sodium content) than regular soy sauce. If you do not have dark soy sauce on hand, you can substitute with oyster sauce.

My #1 tip is make sure your cornstarch slurry has not separated before adding it in - I always try to re-stir right before!

Once you start cooking, this recipe will come together very quickly. The key to pulling this off successfully is having all of your ingredients prepped and in bowls right next to your wok or pan! Have your premixed sauce, noodles, and vegetables ready and easily accessible during the cooking process.

Nutrition