A Mongolian Beef And Broccoli better than take-out? YES! It IS possible.
With an added ingredient to make this thick and glossy sauce taste even BETTER than take-out, PLUS extra sauce in the recipe, the beef is tender/soft using less than half the oil than other recipes. Most Mongolian Beef recipes do not have the addition of vegetables and call for deep frying the beef in 1 cup or more of oil. But not this one. I tried many ways to reduce the calorie content in this recipe.
MONGOLIAN BEEF
I’m hoping you can see how soft, silky and smooth that beef really is. Plus, the addition of broccoli turns Mongolian Beef into an incredible family loved stir-fry!
VELVETING
The most important step in this recipe is to marinade the beef in a mixture of cornstarch and Chinese wine. The technique that most Chinese restaurants use to create that tenderised texture we love so much is called velveting. It feels like a secret to Chinese cooking. Well, not anymore. Velveting can be made up of a mixture of egg whites, baking soda and wine. In this case, we’re using cornstarch, Shaoxing and soy sauce.
HOW TO COOK THIS MONGOLIAN BEEF
After the meat is marinated, it is then — most traditionally — blanched in deep fried oil, then drained and ready to be stir fried. Well, as usual, I broke tradition to make this recipe easier for those of us home-cooks that aren’t comfortable with deep frying → not wanting to start any fires → not wanting to think of the fat pants needed afterwards.
NO DEEP FRYING
We only needed ¼ cup of oil for 2 pounds (1 kilo) of beef strips, and found that was plenty, without needing to drain any oil afterwards or worry about where I was going to put any leftovers. The method works, don’t let it scare you. And only half the fat pants needed.
My biggest piece of advice is to have your oil hot before adding the meat. DO NOT have your oil on high heat, or it will spit and spatter all over you and your stove top. Just…..trust me. Medium heat is enough. If your oil is preheated and hot, your meat will cook FAST. Stir frying it for about 2 minutes is enough time, until you see crispy, golden edges.
MONGOLIAN SAUCE
Adding Hoisin sauce into tho sauce? Priceless. A delicious addition and adds an incredible flavour. Beautiful, soft Mongolian Beef. At first glance, who can be bothered with that extra step, but believe me, if you want Chinese restaurant quality beef, go the extra step and do it.
LOVE ASIAN INSPIRED RECIPES? TRY THESE!
Teriyaki Chicken
Mongolian Glazed Meatballs
Fried Rice
WATCH US MAKE MONGOLIAN BEEF RIGHT HERE
Mongolian Beef And Broccoli
Ingredients
Marinade:
- 2 lbs beef tenderloin thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing Chinese wine
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch corn flour
Sauce:
- ½ cup low sodium soy sauce See notes
- ⅔ cup water
- ⅓ cup brown sugar or coconut sugar
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce optional but adds incredible flavour
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- ¾ tablespoon ground white pepper or 1-2 teaspoons red chili powder
Stir Fry:
- ¼ cup oil
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 8 cloves garlic or 4 tablespoons, minced
- ½ tablespoon ginger minced
- 1 broccoli cut into florets
- 4 green onion scallion stems, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch corn flour mixed with 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Whisk marinade ingredients together until well combined. Marinate the beef slices for 30 minutes to an hour (The more marinading, the more tender the meat will be).
- While beef is marinating, whisk together the sauce ingredients until well combined. Set aside and prepare vegetables.
- Heat up a wok over medium heat with the ¼ cup of oil. When oil is hot, stir-fry the marinated beef in batches of four (don't crowd the wok) until they are just crisp on the edges (about 2 minutes. They cook FAST in the hot oil. Don't have the oil on high heat or it will spit and spatter all over you and your stove). Remove the meat, leaving as much oil in the wok, and set aside.
- Heat up the sesame oil in the wok with any remaining oil, and stir-fry the garlic and ginger until fragrant. Add the vegetables and stir fry until they are vibrant in colour and just tender.
- Add the beef back into the wok with the prepared sauce. Simmer in the sauce until the beef slices are cooked through (about 2 minutes); add the corn starch mixture and the sliced green onions. Cook for a further minute or until the sauce thickens, wile stirring quickly.
- Garnish with extra green onion slices and serve immediately over rice or steamed vegetables.
Notes
*If you can't find Shaoxing wine, use a Rice Wine Vinegar; White or Apple Cider Vinegar instead.
Robin says
I made this tonight and it was delicious! My husband (who is picky🫠) said it was better than any restaurant beef and broccoli! Thanks again Karina for another fantastic recipe 🤗
Cara says
Found this recipe randomly searching for a beef and broccoli recipe that also included Hoisin sauce (since I had some in the refrigerator that I was trying to use up.) My husband and I LOVE the recipe! Thanks so much for sharing. We used sirloin for the meat as that was what we had on hand and fresh broccoli and some asparagus from the garden. REALLY delicious the best beef and broccoli I’ve made at home.
Ken says
Found this way to peppery and also the sauce way to runny.l will make this again with less water and pepper to try and refine it to our taste.neverthe less a. Very good recipe.thank you.
Lisa says
Delicious! My family loves this recipe
I always use filet bur recently tried chicken thighs with this recipe
Also delicious
Ty Karina
Karina says
Hi Lisa, I am so glad to hear that you and your family enjoyed this recipe! Chicken thighs definitely make a great alternative!
Kim says
Ran across this recipe looking for a good broccoli beef to try out. I ended up using flank steak because that was what I had and probably about a teaspo of red pepper flakes and it was delicious.
Nicole D Muir says
This recipe was perfect!!!! We used half beef and half chicken and I am so happy with how it turned out! Thank you!!!
April says
Absolutely the most delicious recipe for Mongolian Beef. I make this often. I follow the recipe to the letter. I always use beef tenderloin (two filet mignon) cut into strips, wine vinegar, and white pepper. These are the recommended substitutes listed above. I make enough for 6 people and always serve over white rice and always include the fresh broccoli. Thank you for this great recipe! Making it again tomorrow along with chicken lo mein for the younger children!
Connor says
I wish I read the note on the low sodium soy sauce before cooking this haha. Can definately see what you mean about the saltiness.
Still a great tasting dish though!
EAP says
Karina, my family loved this so much, we made it two nights in a row! My husband is VERY particular, but he loved this. The first night we used beef, the second night we used pork…both times, the recipe was perfect!!! This is my first time cooking anything like this! I’m so ready to try more recipes! Thank you so much for taking the time to share your time and wonderful tips…along with your recipes!
Anne Chang says
Directly getting to the point, I am not sure if you proofread your article above before publishing it. I think there are a couple of mistakes in It. We Chinese almost always marinate meat, poultry and seafood with COOKING WINE, brown (ShaoXing) or white (rice wine), depending on the type of protein.. From my understanding, VINEGAR is never used in marinate process or the meat could be half cooked, however, I found twice you mentioned Vinegar in the Velveting section. Hopefully, it gets corrected soon. And you can just delete my comments
Karina says
Thank you for picking that up!