Now, don’t get me wrong, I am not saying you will never order Chinese food out again. Yet, this better than take out beef and broccoli will be a favorite weeknight meal in no time. My whole family loves this better than take out beef and broccoli. I love it because it is quick and easy to make any night of the week.
During the week is so tough to get a good, healthy, home cooked meal on the table. It is even more difficult to make a good, healthy, home cooked meal that the whole family will enjoy. This better than take out beef and broccoli will accomplish both of these things. Whoo hoo!
What makes this better than take out beef and broccoli so good?
You are probably wondering why I call it better than take out beef and broccoli? Well, I love Chinese take out, it is often a little bit greasy. Sometimes it has MSG and it is not always the best cuts of meat. This is a healthier version of this classic take out recipe without even really trying too hard. I also add lots of chopped garlic and doesn’t garlic make everything better?
The sauce in this recipe is super simple to make and doesn’t add any extra greasiness to the dish. Also, I use flank steak to make this recipe. Which is a good quality of beef and doesn’t take much to tenderize. All you have to do to make the meat tender in this recipe is make sure you cut against the grain and slice it as thin as possible. I will give you a tip to get it nice and thin in just a bit.
What do you need to make this better than take out beef and broccoli recipe?
I always have Asian ingredients on hand, but this recipe will only call for a few, so that is even better. I always have soy sauce in the house as I use it for Asian and Mexican dishes. Surprisingly a lot of Mexican dishes call for soy sauce in the marinades or in the flavoring as well. So, it is a great pantry staple to keep on hand.
Flank Steak-Â This is my favorite cut of beef to use for beef and broccoli. It is a good quality and is so easy to make tender, just by the way you cut it
Sesame or Olive oil-Â I love the flavor of the sesame oil here. But you don’t need to buy it just for this. If you have olive oil on hand, use that
Broccoli-Kind of important for beef and broccoli
Garlic- I like 3-4 cloves of garlic minced in here. It really adds a lot of flavor
Fresh Ginger- This is an optional ingredient. I like the little punch it adds to the beef and broccoli, but I have also made it without and it is still really yummy
Soy Sauce-Â I use a soy sauce that is called Bluegrass soy sauce and it is barrel aged. I absolutely love it. But use your favorite brand here. Low sodium if you want to cut down on your sodium intake
Brown Sugar- This will help thicken and slightly sweeten the sauce. It is what makes a super rich sauce
Corn Starch- Corn starch is a prominent ingredient in Chinese take out. It thickens the sauce and makes it really nice and rich and coats the beef and broccoli
Freshly cracked black pepper-I don’t add salt as we are adding in soy sauce, but the pepper is really nice here
What equipment will I need to make this recipe?
If you have a wok, great! If not, don’t worry. You can make this dish in a heavy bottomed saute pan just as well. Other than that you will need a goof knife for slicing the beef. A cutting board, basically for everything everyday. You will need a rubber spatula, tongs and a small bowl and whisk. That is literally it. I have tagged some of my favorites for you below.
Chef’s Tips
This is a pretty simple and straight forward recipe, but there are a couple of things that will take it from good to great. A quick tip when you want to cut flank steak really thin is to pop it in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes before you are going to cut it. This will help make the meat easier to cut really thin. Also, make sure that you always cut flank steak against the grain. This will ensure the tenderness of the meat.
Cut the broccoli lengthwise for this recipe so that you get some of the stem too. It is much better than just the florets for this recipe. Lastly, make sure that you use hot water in the sauce to help better melt the cornstarch. Then make sure you get the sauce to a boil. When you are using any kind of slurry or roux, you want the sauce you are thickening to come up the the boil. This will ensure the maximum thickening powder. Plus it will cook out any of the thickener flavor so you don’t taste it in the final product.
If you like this recipe…
Make sure you check out these recipes too if you love this beef and broccoli recipe.
Flank Steak with Chianti Pan Sauce
Better than take out Beef and Broccoli
Ingredients
- 1 lb Flank steak sliced very thin
- 2 tbsp sesame oil or olive oil
- 1 lb broccoli cut into long florets with some of the stem still on
- 3-4 cloves garlic minced
- Sauce
- 1 tsp fresh ginger (optional), grated
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 6 tbsp soy sauce your favorite brand or low sodium
- 3 tbsp light brown sugar packed
- 1 1/2 tbsp corn starch
- Freshly cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cover and freezer your steak in the freezer for about 15 minutes before slicing. This will make it easier to slice really thin.
- In a small bowl, combine all of the sauce ingredients. Stir well until the sugar is dissolved and the cornstarch is not lumpy. Set this to the side for now
- Place a wok or a large skillet on the stove to heat up. Add in the sesame or olive oil. Add the broccoli and saute for about 3-5 minutes, with the lid partially on the wok or pan. Remove the lid and add in the garlic. Saute until fragrant. Then add in the beef and saute that until it is not red/raw on the outside any longer. Season with freshly cracked black pepper.
- Increase the heat to high and spread the broccoli to the edges of the wok or pan. Add in the beef and a little more oil if needed. Saute on high for 2-3 minutes or until you do not see anymore redness. Remove the cooked beef from the pan to not overcook.
- Add in the sauce and reduce the heat to medium/medium low and let it cook for 3-4 minutes. This will thicken the sauce. Then add the beef and broccoli back into the wok/pan and toss all together to coat. If your sauce gets too thick, add in 1-2 tablespoons for hot water. Serve with white or brown rice or pan fried noodles. ENJOY!
