Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry
Bright, fresh beef and broccoli is tasty and easy to make. Our goal was emerald-green broccoli and tender beef coated in a pleasantly salty, supersavory sauce. For the meat, beefy flank steak won out against other cuts that were harder to prepare and had comparatively wimpy beef flavor. For the sauce, we landed on a delicious mix of soy sauce, oyster sauce, chicken broth, cornstarch, sugar, and ginger. And to keep the broccoli beautifully green and crisp-tender, we simply browned the beef for about 4 minutes, tossed in the sauce, topped the whole thing with broccoli florets, and covered the skillet to just steam them through. In only 10 minutes of cooking, we had a new version of an old favorite.
Ingredients
- 1 (1 1/2-pound) flank steak, trimmed
- 1/4 cup oyster sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 3 scallion, white parts sliced thin, green parts cut into 1-inch pieces
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 6 garlic clove, minced
- 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 pound broccoli floret, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
Instructions
- 1Note: The test kitchen's favorite oyster sauce is Lee Kum Kee Premium Oyster Flavored Sauce. Serve with rice.
- 2Cut steak into thirds with grain, then slice each third thin against grain. Whisk 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, water, and baking soda together in medium bowl. Add beef, stir to coat, and let sit at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes.
- 3Combine scallion whites, 2 tablespoons oil, garlic, and ginger in second bowl. Whisk broth, soy sauce, sugar, remaining 3 tablespoons oyster sauce, and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch together in third bowl.
- 4Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add beef to skillet and break up clumps with tongs. Cook, without stirring, until beef is browned on bottom, about 2 minutes. Stir and continue to cook until beef is spotty brown and no longer pink, about 2 minutes longer, stirring occasionally.
- 5Stir in scallion mixture and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Whisk broth mixture to recombine. Add broth mixture and broccoli to skillet, cover, and cook until broccoli is crisp-tender, about 3 minutes, shaking skillet occasionally to redistribute contents. Off heat, stir in scallion greens. Serve.