This easy beef stir fry is a quick weeknight meal with the most delicious sauce.
Tender strips of beef and fresh vegetables are stir fried and tossed in a tangy, sweet, and savory sauce.
Serve this beef stir-fry over rice or egg noodles.
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This Is The Best Beef Stir Fry Because…
- This method ensures the beef actually comes out tender.
- The reviews speak for themselves, it’s VERY delicious.
- It can be prepped ahead, and it cooks quickly.
- The homemade sauce has lots of flavor and is easy to make.
- Clean out the fridge – you can use any variety of vegetables.
Ingredients for Beef Stir Fry
- Beef: The best beef for stir fry is either sirloin or flank steak because it is tasty, affordable, and easy to tenderize. Other cuts of beef such as chuck steak or ribeye can also be used.
- Veggies: Use whatever vegetables you have on hand, personal favorites are broccoli, snap peas, and bell peppers.
For the Stir-Fry Sauce
- Ginger/Garlic: Freshly minced garlic and ginger add tons of flavor. Jarred minced garlic or ginger can be used in this recipe.
- Orange juice: Adds a sweet and tangy flavor to the sauce. Replace the oj with pineapple juice or apple juice.
- Soy sauce: Adds umami (savory flavor).
- Brown sugar: Adds a hint of sweetness. Use either light or dark brown sugar.
- Sesame oil: Adds a nutty flavor.
How to Make Beef Stir Fry
- Cut and then toss the beef with cornstarch. Pan fry (recipe below) and then set aside.
- Stir-fry the vegetables and transfer to the bowl with the beef.
- Mix the sauce ingredients. Cook the sauce in the pan.
- Slowly add cornstarch. Add the vegetables and beef.
How to Keep The Beef Tender
- To make tender strips of beef, trim any silverskin, connective tissue, or large bits of fat, and then ensure you’re cutting slices across the grain (¼-inch thick).
- Don’t skip the step of tossing the beef with cornstarch as it tenderizes the meat and adds a crust for the sauce to stick to.
Tips for a Great Stir Fry
- For easier slicing, place the beef in the freezer for 15 minutes before cutting.
- Prepare all ingredients ahead of time, as a stir fry comes together quickly.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan, or the beef won’t crisp.
- The meat, vegetables, and sauce can be prepared and stored separately for up to 48 hours before cooking.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Five Star Favorite Stir-Fry Recipes
Did you enjoy this Easy Beef Stir Fry? Leave a comment and a rating below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil divided
- 1 pound flank steak or sirloin steak
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 4 cups mixed vegetables
For the Sauce
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
- ⅓ cup orange juice
- ⅓ cup water
- ¼ cup less sodium soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar light or dark
- 1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Whisk the sauce ingredients except corn starch in a bowl. Set aside.
- Trim any silverskin, connective tissue, or large bits of fat from the beef. Cut ¼-inch slices across the grain.
- Season the beef with salt & pepper and toss with cornstarch. Set aside while you prepare the vegetables.
- Cut the vegetables into bite-sized pieces.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat in a wok or large skillet. Add half of the beef and cook until browned, about 2-3 minutes (beef does not need to be cooked through). Transfer to a bowl and repeat with the remaining beef.
- Add the vegetables to the skillet, adding more oil if needed, and cook until tender-crisp, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the beef.
- To make the sauce, reduce the heat to medium. Stir the sauce, pour it into the skillet, and bring to a simmer. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch with 3 tablespoons water (or broth).
- Gradually add the cornstarch slurry to the simmering sauce while whisking to reach the desired consistency, you may not use all of the cornstarch mixture. Let simmer for 2 minutes.
- Add the vegetables and beef with any juices to the pan and cook until heated through. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds if desired.
- Serve with noodles or over rice.
Notes
- For easier slicing, place the beef in the freezer for 15 minutes before cutting.
- Prepare all ingredients ahead of time, as a stir fry comes together quickly.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan, or the beef won’t crisp.
- The meat, vegetables, and sauce can be prepared and stored separately for up to 48 hours before cooking.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 423 | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 68mg | Sodium: 681mg | Potassium: 863mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 9285IU | Vitamin C: 29.9mg | Calcium: 84mg | Iron: 3.9mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian, Chinese© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Excellent recipe. I’ve only made this once and my husband loved it (he’s picky on his Asian cuisine so that’s saying a lot) followed the tenderizing tips and it came out perfectly. I added our favorite mushrooms, green beans, and broccoli and enjoyed this over white rice.
We really enjoyed it. I only used 1 tablespoon of oil. The recipe didn’t tell me where I needed the 2nd tablespoon.
If you look closely it’s under each section. I missed it the first time also.
This was so good, and so easy!
Amazing! I loved the marinade too!!!
Fairly easy to make and came out great.
Spend with pennies has become a go to site for great and simple recipes that I encourage others to check out. This one was another winner. I doubled the sauce and served with chow mein noodles. So good!
Thank you so much for your kind words and for sharing. So glad you loved this recipe Karen!
Beef stir fry with vegetables was spot on. I waded the thin end of a beef tenderloin and whatever veggies I had in the fridge. This will become one of our regular go to’s.
Delicious!!
This recipe is awful!!
Will never make it again!
I’m sorry this didn’t work out for you.
Are you sure you prepped everything correy, because this is an amazing recipe, given you properly measure everything, going crazy with the soy can make for a meh experience, I highly recommend you try and twerk untill you get it right, it’s THAT worth it. However, this is just my opinion and it may not be for everyone.
I see noodles in the picture but not in the recipe, do you add them separately?
This can be served with noodles or over rice. I like to stir the noodles in so they get saucy.
Well, she mentioned making your own noodles or serving over rice so it’s really your choice, just prepare said bed as you like and viola.
My husband and I loved this! Made no substitutions, had everything on hand…no more need to buy ready-made/bottled stir-fry sauce, this is seriously good! An important step to follow is #6. Thank you for sharing!
So happy to hear you and your husband love this stir fry Jenn! You’re very welcome!
I didn’t have oj and i had to use ground beef, however this was awesome, i will definitely be adding in some juice to the sauce next time. I also tossed my beef in a generous amount of siracha after the initial cook.
This was outstanding! The beef was so tender. The flavors were delicious and the sauce had a great consistency. We will double everything next time to make sure there are leftovers. No need to order take-out after discovering this recipe. It’s *that* good!!!
This was so good! I doubled the recipe and it fed 3 of us and enough left overs for another meal. I put it over rice but I think noodles would be even better! I topped it with green onion and sesame seeds which was the icing on the cake! Wouldn’t change a thing!
I loved this recipe! I had to use a bit more oil to cook the steak but everything turned out amazing thank you :)
Excellent recipe! The sauce is definitely the main attraction and I look forward to trying it on pork and chicken. I used frozen veggies instead of freshly chopped. Thawed them out in some warm water for about 5 – 10 min, squeezed out the excess water, and then pan fried them for about 3 – 5 min with a bit of oil, just to warm them up really. Turned out REALLY good. Even my (VERY) fickle 4-year old enjoyed it!
Is the water in the sauce recipe just to mix with the cornstarch or do you add that amount of water to the sauce aswell??
You’ll add water to the sauce (this keeps it from being too salty) and you’ll add a bit more with the cornstarch to thicken.
Sauce is so good!!!! I made my rice with a bit of ginger powder and a dash of turmeric which added to the flavor even more. So easy and really good!
Hi! What is the serving size?
The nutrition information is for ¼ of the recipe.
I liked your receipts I would like to try them and let you know