With tender beef, perfectly sauteed veggies, and a delicious slightly-sweet, slightly-tangy sauce, this beef stir fry is sure to be a go-to dinner recipe in your house!
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This simple beef stir fry hits the spot every single time I make it! It’s really veggie-forward (no surprise there – it’s a stir fry!), but because of how flavorful it is, even the most veggie averse in your household will enjoy it (magical, right?!).
If you’re looking for more delicious stir fry-style recipes, we’ve got you. This chicken pancit is unbelievably delicious, this easy chicken stir fry is a classic, and this teriyaki pork stir fry recipe is an absolute home-run!
Stir Fry Beef Recipe Ingredients
This simple ingredient list is super flavor and veggie-forward (just as a good stir fry should be). Here’s everything you’ll need:
- Orange Juice – to bring a punch of delicious acidity and flavor, you’ll need 1 cup of orange juice.
- Soy Sauce – a ½ cup of soy sauce brings a briny, salty flavor to the dish.
- Honey – 2 tablespoons of honey adds a nice sweetness to the stir fry.
- Chili Garlic Sauce – 2 tablespoons of chili garlic sauce for a little kick of spice and depth.
- Flank Steak – 1 pound of flank steak cut into thin strips (against the grain) will act as the protein component for this stir fry.
- Sesame Oil – 1 tablespoon of sesame oil brings a really classic stir fry flavor.
- Snow Peas – 1 pound of snow peas heads into the skillet as a nice veggie add.
- Red Onion – in addition to the snow peas, you’ll also want to grab ½ of a red onion.
- Carrots – 3 peeled and sliced carrots head into the skillet.
- Broccoli – 1 head broccoli chopped into florets rounds out the veggies!
- Cornstarch – to thicken the sauce up, you’ll need 1 tablespoon of cornstarch dissolved into about 2 tablespoons of room temperature water.
- Limes – lime wedges make for both a pretty and functional garnish!
- Sesame Seeds – sprinkle sesame seeds over the finished dish if you wish!
Ingredient Modifications
This recipe can be modified in so many ways! Here are a few ideas:
- Make it gluten-free: swap the soy sauce for tamari if you’re looking for a GF stir fry.
- Play with the spice level: if you’re sensitive to spice, add less chili garlic sauce to the marinade. If you LOVE spice, add more!
- Switch up the veggies: if you don’t have the veggies listed in this recipe on hand, don’t fret! You can absolutely switch things up as you see fit. If you’re straying from the recipe, just be sure you have 3-4 cups total of veggies.
- Serve with a starch: if you’re looking to add a little bit more substance in the way of starch here, I recommend serving your stir fry over white rice, ramen noodles, or egg noodles.
How To Make Beef Stir Fry
- Marinate the steak – whisk the orange juice, soy sauce, honey, and chili garlic sauce together, then pour it over the sliced flank steak to let marinate for 30 minutes (up to 12 hours) in a bowl or Ziploc bag.
- Saute the veggies – in a large skillet over high heat, add the sesame oil and veggies, and saute on high heat for 4-6 minutes, until wilted and starting to brown, then transfer the veggies to a bowl and set aside.
- Cook the steak – place the marinated steak in the now-empty skillet over high heat, reserving the liquid for later. Cook for 5-6 minutes, until the beef develops a nice caramelized coloring, tossing every few minutes, then transfer to the bowl with the veggies.
- Make the sauce – to the empty skillet, add the rest of the marinade from the bowl or bag, and bring to a boil for 3-4 minutes. Then, turn the heat down to low, add the cornstarch and water mixture to the skillet, and stir to combine. Add the meat and veggies back to the skillet and toss.
- Garnish and serve – garnish the stir fry with sesame seeds and lime wedges, then serve over white rice, ramen noodles, or egg noodles, and enjoy!
Storing, Freezing, and Reheating Beef Stir Fry
Store your leftover stir fry in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer. When you’re ready to enjoy, either heat up in the microwave or in a skillet on the stovetop!
Frequently Asked Questions
My top picks are the veggies included in this recipe (snow peas, red onion, carrots, and broccoli), but you can truly get away with SO MANY different veggies here. Bell peppers, green onions, green beans, baby corn, mushrooms, celery, zucchini, and cauliflower would all be delicious here. Regardless of which veggies you choose, you’ll need 3-4 cups total!
This recipe calls for flank steak – it’s got a really great flavor and, if marinated and cooked correctly, can be super tender. If you can’t find flank steak at your local grocery store, don’t worry. Skirt steak or thinly sliced sirloin will work great!
Yes! Marinating the beef (even just for 30 minutes if you’re short on time) adds so much flavor to the finished dish. It also helps to really tenderize the meat!
Sure! You obviously won’t need to marinate it ahead of time. Instead, you’ll saute the veggies, remove them from the pan, brown and crumble the ground beef, remove it from the pan, then add all of the sauce ingredients to the skillet, bring the sauce to a boil, and then thicken with cornstarch. Everything heads back into the skillet once the sauce is nice and thick, and voila! you’ve got ground beef stir fry!
Either will work! I personally prefer using fresh because I can undercook them just a tinge so they’re still slightly crispy.
More Favorite Beef Recipes
Beef Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1 cup orange juice
- ½ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons chili garlic sauce
- 1 pound flank steak cut into thin strips against the grain
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 pound snow peas
- ½ red onion thinly sliced
- 3 carrots peeled and sliced on a diagonal
- 1 head broccoli chopped into florets
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved into 2 tablespoons room temperature water
- Lime wedges for garnish
- Sesame seeds for garnish
Instructions
- Whisk the orange juice, soy sauce, honey, and chili garlic sauce together, then pour it over the sliced flank steak to let marinate for 30 minutes (up to 12 hours) in a bowl or Ziploc bag.
- In a large skillet over high heat, add the sesame oil and veggies, and saute on high heat for 4-6 minutes, until wilted and starting to brown, then transfer the veggies to a bowl and set aside.
- Place the marinated steak in the now-empty skillet over high heat, reserving the liquid for later. Cook for 5-6 minutes, until the beef develops a nice caramelized coloring, tossing every few minutes, then transfer to the bowl with the veggies.
- To the empty skillet, add the rest of the marinade from the bowl or bag, and bring to a boil for 3-4 minutes. Then, turn the heat down to low, add the cornstarch and water mixture to the skillet, and stir to combine. Add the meat and veggies back to the skillet and toss.
- Garnish the stir fry with sesame seeds and lime wedges, then serve over white rice, ramen noodles, or egg noodles, and enjoy!
Nutrition
Seriously! This is better than a restaurant! This will be on rotation in my home!
Some things I would do differently—-the chili sauce was incredible and definitely makes the dish; I would take it down a notch. Maybe 1.5 tablespoons.
My family loves protein so I would add two pounds of flank steak and cut to thin strips and bite size portions.
Goes great with jasmine rice!
WHAT?! That is so incredibly kind, Leigh! Those are great tips! Thank you so much for taking a moment to share!