Beef Stir Fry plus Vegetables

At a glance

What stands out: Stir fry meals are fast, lighter, and so flavorful! Beef stir fry is reliable for weeknight meals, and it’s straightforward to mix substitutions so you can use what you already have on hand.

How long it takes: about 30 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: large skillet or wok
Servings: 4

Why Stir Fry?

Making stir fry is something we think every cook should know how to do. Why?

• Straightforward: Once you know the basics, making a stir fry is straightforward.
• Fast: Everything cooks quickly in a stir fry, making it a reliable choice for weeknight dinner. The veggies and the sauce can be prepped ahead of time.
• Lighter: Lean protein + tons of veggies + rice = balanced and lighter meal. Choose brown rice if you can resist the sweet fragrance of jasmine rice. Stir fries can be served with noodles, too. For something different, try coconut rice. Classic white rice always works, too.
• Versatile: You can use up any veggies in your fridge with any kind of meat you have on hand.

Once you know the basic formula, it is straightforward to throw together a speedy stir-fry. Straightforward as pie. Or, straightforward as stir fry? ‘Cause pie is hard to make. Straightforward to eat though.

Looking for more Chinese restaurant favorites? Try air fryer egg rolls or air fryer crab Rangoon. Try making your own orange chicken or bourbon chicken. These spicy Asian chicken wings are finger-lickin’ good.

Stacy Said:

“Our daughter said this was a standby stir fry we've ever made. We … added water chestnuts in with the snap peas at the end. This is a good one!”

See More Reader Reviews

How it comes together

Prep all the ingredients. Begin by prepping and assembling all the ingredients you’ll need. It’s important to have everything ready before you turn the pan on. Once you begin cooking your stir fry, things proceed at a rapid pace.

Start cooking the rice. If you want to serve rice, get that started right away. Don’t worry if the rice happens to get done before your stir fry does. Leave the cover on the pan and let it steam. It will be evenly fine.

Stir up the sauce. In a small bowl or measuring cup, stir together the sauce ingredients: soy sauce, dark brown sugar, rice vinegar, fresh ginger (grated), red pepper flakes, minced garlic, and cornstarch. Set that aside for now.

Slice the beef. Slice the beef thinly against the grain. In a medium sized bowl, mix a tablespoon of cornstarch with salt and pepper. Add the beef slices and toss until the beef is coated with the cornstarch mixture. This little trick helps seal in the juices and gives the meat a crisp brown exterior. Set the meat aside while you prep the vegetables.

Cut up the veggies. Peel and slice the carrots and onion. Wash the broccoli and cut it into bite size florets. Wash and trim the peas, removing any tough strings. If you are garnishing with green onions, prep those too.

Stir fry the meat. Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat. When it’s hot, add a tablespoon of oil. We usually use olive oil but avocado, sesame, peanut, or grapeseed oils are good choices too. Add the beef to the pan. You should hear a good sizzle which means your pan is hot enough. Cook, stirring the beef frequently, until it’s done, about five minutes. Dump the meat out of the pan into a bowl or on a plate.

Don't Have A Wok?

No problem! Any large skillet or frying pan will work. A pan with curved sides works better than a straight-sided skillet.

Stir fry the onions and carrots. Put the pan back on the heat, and add the onions and carrots. They should sizzle when they hit the pan. Since carrots are a firmer vegetable, we like to stir fry them for a few minutes before we add the faster cooking vegetables, so the carrots and onions get extra cooking time.

Stir fry broccoli. Once the carrots and onion start softening, add the broccoli to the pan. Again, you should see some sizzle! If you don’t, turn up the heat or wait a bit longer before adding anything else. Stir fry the broccoli for a few minutes.

Add the sauce. Give the sauce ingredients a speedy stir to make sure the cornstarch hasn’t settled to the bottom. Add the sauce to the pan, stirring constantly, along with the peas and the beef, and any accumulated juices.

The sauce will cook quickly. It will bubble and turn clear in just a minute or two.

Serve. Your stir fry is ready to serve! Wasn’t that fast? Serve the beef and vegetables over a mound of steaming jasmine rice. Sprinkle sliced green onions on top for a garnish.

Tips For A Successful Stir Fry

• Preparation! Make sure everything is prepped, and ready to go before you turn your pan on. Stir fry moves quickly so you’ll want to have everything ready. That includes your sauce ingredients.
• Preheat! Have your pan sizzling hot! Keep the heat high so that every ingredient gets cooked at a high temperature.
• Plan! Cook items with similar cooking times together; don’t throw everything in the pan all at once. For example, in this recipe, we start with the beef and remove it when it’s cooked, then we add the carrots and onions, which take a little longer to cook, then the broccoli, stir the speedy-cooking peas, and the beef in at the end.

Make-Ahead Ideas

Prep your vegetables and meat up to a day ahead and store in covered bowls or zip top bags. Remember to keep the vegetables separated according to when you’ll add them to the stir-fry, i.e. longer cooking vegetables together, fast cooking vegetables together. Stir together the sauce ingredients up to a day ahead and store in the refrigerator.

Keeping leftovers

Refrigerate: Promptly refrigerate leftover stir fry in a covered container. It will keep for three to four days. We find it works better to store the stir fry with the leftover rice and reheat them together.

Freeze: Stir fry can be frozen in a freezer safe container or bag for up to two months. Thaw overnight in the fridge for best results.

Reheat: Microwave individual portions until heated through. Try not to overheat the mixture. If you have a larger amount, reheat mixture in a skillet over medium heat.

• Yield: 4
• Prep: 15 minutes
• Cook: 21 minutes
• Total: 36 minutes

Ingredients

For Sauce:

• ¼ cup soy sauce (we usually use less sodium soy sauce)
• ¼ cup dark brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (more if desired)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

For Stir Fry:

• 1 pound flank or flat iron steak
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup thinly sliced carrots (cut diagonally, if desired)
• 1 small red onion (sliced vertically, about 1 cup)
• 2 cups broccoli (cut into bite-sized florets)
• 1 ½ cups sugar snap or snow peas

For Serving:

• 4 cups cooked rice
• 2 or 3 green onions (thinly sliced)

Method

1. If you're serving rice, get that cooking first.
2. In a small bowl combine sauce ingredients, and set aside.
3. Combine 1 tablespoon cornstarch with salt and pepper. Using a very sharp knife, cut the beef into very thin slices against the grain. Toss sliced beef with cornstarch mixture. Set beef aside while you prep the vegetables.
4. Peel and slice the carrots and onions, rinse and cut the broccoli, and trim peas, removing tough strings from the edges. It's best to have the veggies ready to go before you heat the pan.
5. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Tilt pan and swirl to coat the sides. Add the beef and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or desired doneness is achieved. Remove beef from pan and place on a plate.
6. Return pan to high heat and add the onions and carrots; stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the broccoli; stir fry for 3 more minutes.
7. Stir in sauce mixture (stir sauce mixture well before adding), beef and any accumulated juices, and snow peas; cook for another 1 to 2 minutes or until sauce is thickened and peas are cooked to desired doneness.
8. Serve over rice and garnish with sliced green onions.

Notes

Variations: You can use different meats or vegetables you like, adjusting cook time if necessary. This recipe is versatile. Canned vegetables, such as water chestnuts or bamboo shoots can be added when you add the sauce ingredients near the end of the cooking time.