Beef and broccoli is the takeout order that is fastest to beat at home, and this is the version we cook when the day has run long. Thin slices of flank steak get a quick cornstarch coating, the broccoli stays bright and crisp at the edges, and the sauce — soy, brown sugar, fresh ginger and garlic — turns glossy in the pan in about a minute. From the first slice to rice on the table takes half an hour, and most of that is the rice cooking itself.
The order of operations is the whole trick, and it is the opposite of how most weeknight cooks instinctively work. The broccoli goes in first and comes out, the beef goes in second and comes out, and only then does the sauce get its minute alone to thicken. Everything meets again at the end for sixty seconds. Cooked that way, nothing steams, nothing overcooks, and the sauce coats instead of pooling — the same one-pan discipline that makes our One-Pan Creamy Tuscan Chicken work on busy nights.
Serve it over jasmine rice, cauliflower rice, or noodles, with sesame seeds and sliced green onions over the top. It belongs firmly in our Easy Dinners rotation: a short supermarket list, one large skillet or wok, and a result that tastes like you planned it.
Slice against the grain, and slice it cold
Flank steak has long, visible muscle fibers, and tenderness is mostly a question of cutting across them instead of along them. Look for the lines running the length of the meat and slice perpendicular to them, about 1/4 inch thick. Cold meat slices far more cleanly than warm meat, so put the steak in the freezer for 20 minutes before you start if you have the time — it firms up just enough to give you thin, even slices instead of ragged ones. The cornstarch coating, borrowed from the Chinese velveting technique, then seals the surface so the slices stay silky in the hot pan instead of toughening.
Blanch the broccoli in the same pan
Broccoli needs a head start the beef does not, because raw florets will not finish in the two minutes the sauce allows. Give them 3 to 4 minutes in the skillet with a splash of water and the lid on, until they turn bright green and just tender at the stem, then spread them on a plate so they stop cooking. That brief steam is the difference between broccoli that is crisp and sweet and broccoli that is either raw in the middle or army-green and tired by the time it reaches the table.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb flank steak (680 g), sliced thin against the grain
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch (8 g)
- 5 cups broccoli florets (450 g), cut into bite-size pieces
- 3 tablespoons water (45 ml), for steaming the broccoli
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil (30 ml), divided
- 4 garlic cloves, finely minced (about 12 g)
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (6 g)
- 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce (120 ml)
- 1/3 cup water (80 ml), for the sauce
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar (38 g)
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil (5 ml)
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch (3 g), mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water for the sauce slurry
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced, and 1 teaspoon sesame seeds (3 g), to serve
- 4 cups cooked jasmine rice (740 g), to serve
Amounts are for the yield below. US customary measures first, grams in brackets for scale users.
Step-by-step instructions
- Coat the beef. Toss the sliced steak with the 1 tablespoon cornstarch and a pinch of salt and pepper until every slice looks lightly dusted. Set it aside at room temperature while the broccoli cooks — about 10 minutes of resting lets the coating cling instead of sliding off in the pan.
- Steam the broccoli first. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the broccoli and the 3 tablespoons of water, cover, and steam for 3 to 4 minutes until bright green and just tender at the stem. Tip the florets onto a plate and wipe the pan dry.
- Sear the beef in one layer. Return the pan to high heat with the remaining oil until it just starts to shimmer. Add the beef in a single layer — work in two batches if the pan is crowded, because crowded beef steams and turns grey. Sear for about 2 minutes without moving it, then stir and cook 1 minute more until browned at the edges but still slightly pink inside. Transfer to the plate with the broccoli.
- Bloom the ginger and garlic. Drop the heat to medium. Add the garlic and ginger to the same pan and stir for about 30 seconds until fragrant. Do not let the garlic color — in a ripping-hot stir-fry pan it goes from golden to bitter in seconds.
- Build and thicken the sauce. Pour in the soy sauce, the 1/3 cup water and the brown sugar, and scrape up every browned bit from the bottom of the pan. Bring to a simmer, stir in the cornstarch slurry, and cook for about 1 minute until the sauce turns glossy and coats the back of a spoon. Stir in the sesame oil off the fiercest heat.
- Bring it together and serve. Return the beef, broccoli and any juices from the plate to the pan. Toss for about 1 minute until everything is hot and glazed and the beef is cooked through. Serve immediately over the rice, scattered with the green onions and sesame seeds.
Nutrition estimate
| Nutrient | Per serving |
|---|---|
| Calories | 380 kcal |
| Protein | 34 g |
| Carbohydrates | 22 g |
| Fat | 17 g |
| Saturated fat | 5 g |
| Sodium | 980 mg |
| Fiber | 3 g |
| Sugar | 11 g |
Nutrition figures are estimates calculated from standard ingredient data for the yield stated. Your actual values will vary with brands, substitutions and portion sizes — treat them as a guide, not a guarantee.
Storage & reheating
Leftovers keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator; store the rice separately so it does not soak up the sauce. Reheat the stir-fry in a hot skillet for 2 to 3 minutes rather than the microwave, which keeps the broccoli from going limp and the beef from toughening. The cooked dish freezes for up to 2 months, though the broccoli softens noticeably after thawing — it is at its best fresh or next-day. Nutrition figures are estimates from standard ingredient data and vary with brands and substitutions, and do not include the rice.
Easy Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry
Tender steak, crisp broccoli and a glossy ginger-garlic sauce — 30 minutes, one pan.
Ingredients
Tick ingredients off as you prep, and tap a step below to mark it done as you cook. Scaling adjusts the listed amounts - seasoning to taste stays your call.
Instructions
- Coat the beef. Toss the sliced steak with the 1 tablespoon cornstarch and a pinch of salt and pepper until every slice looks lightly dusted. Set it aside at room temperature while the broccoli cooks — about 10 minutes of resting lets the coating cling instead of sliding off in the pan.
- Steam the broccoli first. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the broccoli and the 3 tablespoons of water, cover, and steam for 3 to 4 minutes until bright green and just tender at the stem. Tip the florets onto a plate and wipe the pan dry.
- Sear the beef in one layer. Return the pan to high heat with the remaining oil until it just starts to shimmer. Add the beef in a single layer — work in two batches if the pan is crowded, because crowded beef steams and turns grey. Sear for about 2 minutes without moving it, then stir and cook 1 minute more until browned at the edges but still slightly pink inside. Transfer to the plate with the broccoli.
- Bloom the ginger and garlic. Drop the heat to medium. Add the garlic and ginger to the same pan and stir for about 30 seconds until fragrant. Do not let the garlic color — in a ripping-hot stir-fry pan it goes from golden to bitter in seconds.
- Build and thicken the sauce. Pour in the soy sauce, the 1/3 cup water and the brown sugar, and scrape up every browned bit from the bottom of the pan. Bring to a simmer, stir in the cornstarch slurry, and cook for about 1 minute until the sauce turns glossy and coats the back of a spoon. Stir in the sesame oil off the fiercest heat.
- Bring it together and serve. Return the beef, broccoli and any juices from the plate to the pan. Toss for about 1 minute until everything is hot and glazed and the beef is cooked through. Serve immediately over the rice, scattered with the green onions and sesame seeds.
Recipe by Shahid Imran · FryDaily. Printing? This card is designed to print cleanly on its own.
