With tender beef, flavorful sauce, and perfectly steamed broccoli, our better-than-takeout Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli is sure to become an instant classic in your home kitchen!
Table of Contents
- This recipe is…
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli Recipe Ingredients
- Beef and Broccoli Recipe Variations and Modifications
- How to Make Beef and Broccoli in the Instant Pot
- Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli Recipe Tips
- How to Serve Beef and Broccoli with Rice
- How to Store
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Favorite Instant Pot Recipes
- Instant Pot Beef & Broccoli Recipe
This recipe is…
Over the years, we’ve made lots of classic takeout recipes, like our Baked Crispy Orange Chicken and our all-time favorite Mongolian Beef. When developing this easy beef and broccoli recipe, though, we wanted to give you a meal that was easy enough to make on a weeknight.
The key to recreating this Chinese food classic at home is the trusty Instant Pot, which speedily cooks up super tender beef in a savory brown garlic sauce in just 30 minutes. (That’s even faster than delivery!) It’s the perfect meal to make on busy weeknights, and is sure to please the entire family!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- 30-minute recipe is perfect for busy weeknights
- Family-friendly dish everyone will love
- Easy to swap in different proteins and veggies
- Double the recipe for delicious leftovers later in the week!
Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli Recipe Ingredients
Here’s everything you need to make this easy beef and broccoli in just 30 minutes. Find ingredient notes (including substitutions and swaps) below.
- Avocado oil – start this recipe by adding a tablespoon of avocado oil (or ghee) to your Instant Pot
- Onion – one diced onion gets added to the pot
- Beef stew meat – 1 ½ pounds of cubed beef cook up nice and tender in the Instant Pot
- Garlic – 3 whole cloves of garlic help build a flavorful sauce
- Ginger – a tablespoon of grated fresh ginger adds flavor and subtle heat
- Coconut aminos – ½ cup of this popular soy sauce substitute is the base of the savory brown sauce
- Chicken broth – ½ cup adds flavor and depth to the sauce, and keeps the meat moist
- Sesame oil – just 2 teaspoons adds a ton of toasted, nutty flavor
- Rice wine vinegar – 2 teaspoons of unflavored vinegar adds a tart punch
- Coconut sugar – 2 tablespoons round out all the flavors in this dish
- Sea salt –¼ teaspoon seasons all the ingredients
- Cornstarch – 3 tablespoons help thicken the sauce
- Broccoli – fresh (or frozen) broccoli is one of the star ingredients in this dish
- Rice – for serving, all you need is some steamed brown or white rice
- Sesame seeds – black or white sesame seeds get sprinkled on the finished dish for color and texture
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Beef and Broccoli Recipe Variations and Modifications
Our easy beef and broccoli is super versatile! Here are some ways to customize it to your liking.
- Chicken for Beef – If you don’t have beef on hand, or simply prefer chicken, you can make this dish with an equal amount of chicken instead. Just reduce the pressure cook time to 12 minutes.
- Soy Sauce for Coconut Aminos – Substitute 1/4 cup of tamari for the coconut aminos along with an additional 1/4 cup of broth or water, and omit the salt.
- Dried Spices – you can substitute the fresh garlic, onion, and ginger for 1 teaspoon each of onion powder, garlic powder, and ginger.
- Other Veggies for Broccoli – If you don’t have broccoli on hand, or just prefer different veggies, cauliflower, snow peas, and bell peppers would all be great additions to this dish!
- Cornstarch for Arrowroot Starch – Did you know that most starches are interchangeable? You can swap in arrowroot, tapioca, or potato starch here.
How to Make Beef and Broccoli in the Instant Pot
Here’s how you’ll make this beef and broccoli:
Step 1: To start, you’ll simply add the diced onions to your Instant Pot on sauté mode and cook them for a few minutes until they begin to brown.
Step 2: Browning the beef before cooking adds an extra layer of flavor to the dish, but you can skip it if you’re short on time! You’ll season your beef with salt and pepper, then add it to the pot and cook for two to 3 minutes per side.
Step 3: Ginger, garlic, coconut aminos, chicken broth, coconut sugar, sesame oil, and rice wine vinegar are what you’ll need to make the sauce. Simply pour these ingredients over the beef.
Step 4: Seal the Instant Pot and set to cook for 15 minutes on high pressure. Once the timer goes off, manually release the pressure and remove the lid from the pot.
Step 5: You can choose to steam your broccoli on the stovetop or in the microwave, but the quickest method is to buy frozen steam-in-bag broccoli!
Step 6: Turn the pot back to sauté mode, then stir the cornstarch with water to make a slurry and pour it into the sauce. Let the sauce come to a simmer and thicken.
Finally, you’ll stir the broccoli into the beef mixture, then serve over rice, cauliflower rice, or quinoa.
Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli Recipe Tips
- Turn this recipe into a freezer meal – If you’d like to make a freezer meal that you can prep, freeze, and then dump into the Instant Pot or slow cooker, you can find the recipe in our slow cooker freezer meals post!
- Double up – This dish stores and reheats really well, so double (or triple) the recipe for excellent leftovers for work lunches or family dinners later in the week
How to Serve Beef and Broccoli with Rice
Serve the beef & broccoli hot, spooned over some white or brown rice to soak up the delicious, savory brown sauce.
How to Store
The beef and broccoli leftovers will keep for 4-5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator, or for up to 3 months in the freezer.
To reheat from frozen, simply microwave for 5-6 minutes, stirring halfway through, or place in a saucepan with matching lid and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, or until warmed through.
Frequently Asked Questions
This super craveable sauce is made with coconut aminos, chicken broth, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, and coconut sugar — and gets thickened with cornstarch.
This recipe calls for pre-cut beef stew meat, which both saves time and is budget-friendly. But you could also buy a larger piece of beef chuck or flank steak and cut it into strips.
Yes! You can make slow cooker beef and broccoli by following the same recipe. Just brown the beef, onions, garlic, and ginger on your stovetop, then transfer to the slow cooker to cook on high for 4 hours (or low for 8 hours). Once the time is up, transfer the sauce from the beef to a saucepan over medium heat and stir in the cornstarch, then cook until the mixture thickens.
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More Favorite Instant Pot Recipes
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Instant Pot Beef & Broccoli
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or ghee
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 ½ pounds beef stew meat
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated (or 1 teaspoon ground ginger)
- ½ cup coconut aminos
- ½ cup chicken broth or water
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons unseasoned rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar
- ¼ teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 heads of broccoli, chopped into florets, or one pound frozen, steam-in-bag broccoli
- White or brown rice, for serving
- Sesame seeds, for garnish
Instructions
- Set the Instant Pot to ‘saute’ and add the avocado oil to the pot. Once hot, add the diced onion and cook for 3-4 minutes, until translucent.
- Add the beef stew meat to the pot and cook for 2-3 minutes, until browned, then flip and cook an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Add the garlic and ginger and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Pour the coconut aminos, chicken broth, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, coconut sugar, and salt into the pot.
- Seal the pot and set to cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. Once the timer goes off, immediately release the pressure from the pot, then remove the lid and set it back to ‘saute’ mode.
- Steam the broccoli using your preferred method.
- Microwave Method: Place the broccoli florets into a large glass bowl with about ¼ cup water. Affix with either a microwave-safe lid or seal with plastic wrap. Microwave on high for 5 minutes, until the florets are bright green and easily pierced with a fork. Drain the water from the broccoli and set aside.
- Stovetop Method: Place the broccoli florets into a medium sized pot with ¼ cup water. Place the lid on and let simmer for 10 minutes, until the florets are bright green and easily pierced with a fork. Drain the water from the broccoli and set aside.
- Whisk together the cornstarch and water and stir it into the pot. Let the mixture come to a low boil. Once the sauce is thickened, turn the Instant Pot off and serve!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
This recipe was fantastic. The beef was so tender and the flavor was delicious. I ended up using low sodium tamari instead of coconut aminos as that is what I had on hand. This recipe is a keeper for my family!
We’re so glad you loved it, Emily!!
This was really delicious! I used thinly sliced steak because it was on sale. I didn’t have any sesame oil either but I think the flavours were excellent. I will definitely make again!
We’re so glad you loved this recipe, Jackie! Thank you so much for taking the time to share this with us!