My dad was a creature of habit. No joke: my mom cooked him beef with some seasonal veggie every night. I remember seeing bok choy and asparagus a lot. Funny though that broccoli wasn’t ever in the picture!
My mom’s cooking must have been pretty darn good. My dad never complained, or maybe it was just in his nature to not say much. I don’t recall him ever telling my mom to cook him something else or saying that the dish tasted bad. It’s strange: I’m sure my dad would have been okay with me eating a couple of pieces of the beef and whatever veggie here and there, but I never really did so because it was HIS dish. Or maybe I never asked because I was bored just looking at him eating the same ol’ thing every night!
While I could have just asked my mom how to make broccoli beef since she probably can make it blindfolded with her hands behind her back, I decided to learn and make it on my own. Experimenting various combinations over the years, this is what I came up with. I think my dad would approve.
If you like this Broccoli Beef recipe, try my
Beef with Mixed Mushrooms Stir-Fry (什茵牛柳粒)
Beef and Veggie Stir-Fry
Beef Chow Fun (乾炒牛河)
Broccoli Beef (西蘭牛肉)
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Mains
- Method: Stir Fry
- Cuisine: Chinese
Description
My dad’s one and only dish he ate over the years. This one’s for you, dad!
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound of flank steak at room temperature
- 1 large broccoli crown, cut into florets, stems thinly sliced
- 1 carrot, thinly sliced into planks
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- Salt
- Neutral-flavored cooking oil
MARINADE
- 2 teaspoons of light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon of cornstarch
- 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon of sesame oil
SAUCE
- 3 tablespoons of oyster sauce
- 3 tablespoons of water
- 1 teaspoon of light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon of cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon of sesame oil
Instructions
- Marinate the beef. Mix together the light soy sauce, cornstarch, black pepper, and sesame oil in a large bowl. Slice the beef against the grain into thin strips. Transfer the beef into the marinade and mix well to combine. Set aside as you prepare the sauce and veggies.
- Create the sauce. Mix together the sauce ingredients in a bowl. Set aside.
- Par-cook the veggies. In a pan on high heat, bring 1 cup of water to a boil. Add the broccoli into the boiling water. Cover the pan and steam the broccoli for 1 minute. Add the sliced carrots into the pan and steam for another minute. Season the broccoli and carrot lightly with salt. Drain the veggies in a colander. Set aside.
- Cook the beef. Wipe the pan dry and turn the heat down to medium high. Add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. Gently add the flank steak in a single layer into the pan.◊ Allow the beef to cook undisturbed for 1 minute. Flip the beef and cook for another minute.^ Transfer the beef into a bowl and set aside. Do not wipe away any residual marinade that might be left in the pan.
- Put it all together. Add another tablespoon of cooking oil into the pan. Add the broccoli, carrot and garlic. Stir-fry until the garlic smells fragrant. Add the beef and sauce into the pan. Mix until well incorporated. Turn the heat off and serve immediately.
Notes
- ◊Don’t overcrowd the pan with beef. Each strip of beef deserves the opportunity to brown. Overcrowding “strips” this away. Cook a second batch if necessary.
- ^The beef may look bloody and/or undercooked. It’s okay. It continues to cook in the next step.
Keywords: Beef, Stir Fry, One Pot Cooking
