Beef Stir Fry with Noodles
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When you need dinner on the table quick and have a refrigerator full of vegetables to use, Beef Stir Fry is the best recipe to use them up! Serve with or without noodles to stretch a meal even more. Read the tips below to make this an epic one-pot meal!
Beef & Vegetable Stir Fry
I don’t know about you guys, but my momma’s stir fries always included everything but the kitchen sink. It was a perfect leftover dish. Look through the fridge and find any vegetable or meat that needed to be used, leftover pasta or rice, and some soy sauce and you’ve got the makings of a family stir fry my friend!
Now, granted, I won’t say that method or this recipe is the most authentic way of making a Chinese stir fry, but I will say that it is one of the best ways to get kids to eat their vegetables. My oldest two will pretty much eat anything I give them. However, you add a noodle and tell them this is how people eat in other parts of the world and they’re fascinated!
Plus, my family in general loves Asian cuisine but boy is it expensive! The amount of food we have to buy to feed our entire family brings up a bill of over $100! So making it at home with things we have on hand is always a much cheaper, and probably healthier option.
Consider this a base recipe. Feel free to alter it as you see fit. It’s one of those recipes with a hundred different ways to make it and none of them are wrong.
Beef Stir Fry Ingredients
How to Make Beef Stir Fry
Step 1: Start by prepping all of your vegetables. You don’t want to wait until your beef is cooking to do this as it is a very quick moving dish. Dice everything into bite sized pieces and cook the noodles you’re using if you would like. You can make this a one pot dish, just note that cooking the noodles in the skillet will prevent you from draining any excess starch and makes the finished dish a bit thicker. Note: to cook the noodles in the finished stir fry, add 2 cups of water and the noodles, then cover with a lid for 10 minutes at a simmer.
Step 2: Slice your beef into 1/4 inch thick pieces, on the diagonal. Toss the beef strips in a large bowl with cornstarch, salt, and pepper. Use a pair of tongs to toss and fully coat. Add1/8 cup of avocado or peanut oil to a 13″ braiser, wok, or 5 quart Dutch oven. Sear the meat on oe side before starting to add the vegetables.
Step 3: Add the heartier vegetables first. For this recipe that would be the carrots and peppers. hey take a little longer to cook so we want to give them a head start of about 5 minutes. Alternatively, you can cook the meat fully and then remove it from the cast iron before adding the vegetables. Then add the rest of the vegetables and sauté until everything is tender.
Step 4: Now make the sauce. Add al the sauce ingredients to a bowl and stir. Add the sauce, beef, and noodles to the skillet or pot. Stir and simmer covered for about 5-10 minutes, tossing occasionally. Top with green onions and sesame seeds for garnish.
How to Make Beef Stir Fry Keto-Friendly
To make this keto-friendly, use xanthan gum instead of cornstarch and omit the noodles. Also, use a brown sugar alternative like Swerve Brown.
What type of beef to use for beef stir fry?
Beef stir fry is a really quick dish, so you want to use a good cut of meat that doesn’t take long to cook and will be tender, not chewy, in the end. Choose from this list of beef cuts and prepare the raw beef by slicing into thin strips.
- OUTSIDE SKIRT
- TOP SIRLOIN STEAK
- SIRLOIN TIP STEAK
- RANCH STEAK
- DENVER STEAK
- SIRLOIN TIP CENTER STEAK
- SIRLOIN TIP SIDE STEAK
- FLANK STEAK
- INSIDE SKIRT
Storing Leftovers
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
What to serve with Beef Stir Fry
This is really a one pot meal. But if you’re having a large crowd, consider preparing the noodles separately. Then you can serve with the option of rice or noodles.
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Beef Stir Fry with Noodles
Equipment
- 13" Braiser Skillet or 5 quart Dutch Oven
- Knife
- Cutting board
- pasta pot
Ingredients
Stir Fry
- 1.5 pounds steak sliced 1/4 inch thick
- 1.5 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/8 cup peanut oil
- 1 purple onion cut into thin wedges
- 1 red pepper sliced into 1/4 inch strips
- 1 head of broccoli cut into florets
- 3 carrots sliced diagonal 1/4 inch thick
- 8 ounces mushroom sliced 1/4 inch thick
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 Tablespoon fresh ginger grated
- 4 scallions
- 2 bundles of udon noodles optional
Sauce
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 3 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 Tablespoon fish sauce
- 1/2 Tablespoon sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Instructions
- Once all the ingredients are prepared, toss the sliced beef in a large bowl with the cornstarch, salt, and pepper. Use tongs to ensure each piece is fully coated.
- Cook the noodles in a separate pot if using and drain of excess starch and water.
- Heat oil in a cast iron wok, braiser skillet, or Dutch Oven. Sear the meat on both sides and remove to a plate while cooking the vegetables.
- Add the heartier vegetables such as the carrots and peppers and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining vegetables (minus the green onions and sesame seeds) and sauté another five minutes.
- Whisk the sauce ingredients in a medium bowl to combine. Add the meat, cooked noodles if using, and sauce to the vegetable skillet. Cook and continue to toss for 5-10 minutes until all is coated and sauce has thickened.
- Top with green onions and sesame seeds for garnish.
Nutrition
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