Easy Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry

This Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry is so quick and easy to make – whip it up in 30 minutes with strips of tender beef, plenty of healthy broccoli and just a few simple ingredients to make the sauce.

I have never met a busy mom who doesn’t love a good 30 minute meal – because I know I most definitely live for those easy dinners.

And here we are with yet another recipe to add to your arsenal of “dinners that basically make themselves” – because there can never be enough of those.

Some of my favorite quick meals from the blog are my Balsamic Bruschetta Chicken (a family favorite!), my Easy Chicken Fried Rice and my Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup – all hearty meals that don’t take a lot of time to whip up.

But today we’re going to talk about this Asian-inspired little number – a quick, simple and flavorful beef and broccoli stir fry.

Please do yourself a favor and use a tender cut of beef that cooks quickly. Something like beef round cut into strips is perfect. I know there’s many delicious recipes for crock pot beef and broccoli out there, but this one is a quick variation so you need a quick-cooking cut of beef.

What I love most about this recipe? I don’t have to run to a specialty store to buy seven different sauces and spices. I have most of these in my pantry all the time – the one I buy especially for Asian-inspired recipes is toasted sesame oil. But that’s one, and not seven, so I figure it’s fine to call it fuss-free 😉

How to Make Beef and Broccoli:

Watch the recipe video:

Steps explained:

1. Marinate the beef: Just stir together the sauce ingredients, then stir in the beef strips. Since you’re using a tender cut, you only need to marinate for a few minutes while you do some other stuff for the recipe.
2. Cook the broccoli: Just stir fry it in a large, deep skillet or sauté pan until it’s just cooked, then remove it from the pan and set aside.
3. Cook the beef: Add the beef complete with the marinade/sauce to the hot skillet and simmer for a few minutes until it’s almost done to your liking (my husband only wants it cooked 30 seconds, so check early and often).
4. Add the broccoli: Stir in the broccoli and simmer for 30 seconds to heat it through.
5. Serve over rice and dig in 😍

Ingredient Notes:

• beef broth: if you don’t have any beef broth on hand, you can use chicken broth. the sauce will be less rich, but still delicious.
• toasted sesame oil: this does add a nice flavor, but it’s an ingredient I know not everybody has on hand. Just use a neutral oil to replace it, and sprinkle the dish with sesame seeds before serving, if you have those.
• brown sugar: calm down, people, it’s just 1 teaspoon 😉 if you want to avoid the sugar, use honey/maple syrup or skip it completely.
• beef: do use a tender cut like beef round to make sure it’s absolutely tender and delicious after a short cooking time.
• broccoli: I used fresh, but frozen broccoli is OK, too. I would defrost before using it, and you’ll have to be OK with it being a little more mushy.

Try these easy beef recipes next:

• Instant Pot Beef and Barley Soup
• Crock Pot Beef Tips in Mushroom Gravy
• Easy Beef Stroganoff

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Yield: 4 servings

Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Try this easy beef and broccoli stir fry for dinner tonight - takeout made right at home!

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Ingredients

For the Beef:

• 1/2 cup beef broth
• 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon dried garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 pound beef round, cut into strips

For the Broccoli:

• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 pound broccoli, in florets

Instructions

1. Marinate beef: Whisk beef broth, soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar, cornstarch and spices together in a medium bowl. Stir in the beef and set aside.
2. Cook broccoli: Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the broccoli and stir fry until just tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside on a plate.
3. Cook beef: Increase the heat to medium-high. Add the beef with the marinade to the hot pan and stir-fry until beef is just cooked, 30 seconds to 2 minutes (depending on how done you want it).
4. Finish dish: Stir the broccoli into the beef and simmer for 30-60 seconds, until sauce has thickened.

Notes

Ingredient Substitutes:

• Chicken broth can be used in place of beef broth
• A neutral oil is fine in place of the sesame oil, it will change the taste a little
• Brown sugar can be skipped or substituted with honey/maple syrup
• Use a tender cut of beef for best results
• Frozen broccoli works OK if you defrost it first

Cooking Tips:

• don´t overcook the beef or it will turn out tough
• don´t overcook the broccoli either, or it will get smashed when you stir it into the beef and sauce
• we love this served over rice, but Asian noodles work really well, too - when I make noodles, I toss them in the skillet with the beef and broccoli

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 451 Total Fat: 30g Saturated Fat: 10g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 17g Cholesterol: 99mg Sodium: 804mg Carbohydrates: 11g Net Carbohydrates: 0g Fiber: 4g Sugar: 3g Sugar Alcohols: 0g Protein: 35g

Nutrition is an estimate and provided as a courtesy.