We love a good weeknight stir fry dish, especially a beef stir fry. It’s a great way to use a ton of veggies and it comes together very quickly, making it a perfect weeknight dinner. We’ve gotten a few head of Bok Choy the last few weeks in our CSA box and love using them in stir frys. It’s a great way to get in some extra greens. We often use chicken or shrimp in our stir frys because we try to limit our beef consumption, but it’s truly our favorite protein in stir frys, if we’re being honest. We used a sirloin flap for this recipe, which we had picked up at our favorite local butcher (The Meat Shop – local grass fed Wagyu beef), but we know that is not an easy cut to find. Flank or skirt steak both work great in stir frys as well.
I highly recommend not to skip the cornstarch coating for the meat, as it allows the meat to brown better and helps to thicken the sauce. The sauce features three main ingredients – Oyster sauce, soy sauce, and Sambal. Oyster sauce originates from China and is a combination of oyster extracts, sugar, salt, and water. Sounds disgusting, I know, but while I don’t recommend trying it by the spoonful, it adds a potent and umami rich flavor to the sauce. It can easily be found in Asian supermarkets, but is fairly common in most traditional supermarkets as well, if you look in the aisle with Asian imports. Sambal is a chili paste that originates from Indonesia, and we always keep a jar in the fridge! It is such a versatile sauce that adds a punch of spiciness to any dish.
Everything is cooked in one pan – I recommend a wok if you have one, but a stainless steel skillet works well. We actually used this one for the recipe tonight, as we’ve badly scraped up our wok and need a new one! We also try to always have some frozen brown rice on hand, to speed things up a bit. We’ve been enjoying the Grain Trust brand of frozen steamed brown rice we find at Central Market.
Feel free to adapt this recipe with whatever veggies you like! Make it your own.
Asian Beef Stir Fry with Bok Choy
Ingredients
- 1 Pound Flank or Skirt Steak Thinly Sliced
- 3 Tablespoons Cornstarch
- 1/2 Medium yellow onion Thinly Sliced
- 3 Cloves garlic Thinly Sliced
- 1 Inch Knob Ginger Thinly Sliced
- 1 Head Bok Choy Chopped
- 1 Cup Snap Peas
- 4 green onions Cut into thirds with white ends removed
- 1 Fresno Pepper Thinly Sliced
- 2 Tablespoons Oyster Sauce
- 3 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Sambal Or other Chili Garlic Sauce
- 4 Tablespoons Water
- 3-4 Tablespoons Grapeseed oil or Canola Oil
Instructions
- Toss the steak in the cornstarch until well coated and set aside.
- Heat oil in large skillet or wok over medium-high heat.
- Add onion, garlic, and ginger and saute until translucent.
- Add in the beef and stir occasionally allowing time for the beef to brown, about 5-7 minutes.
- While the meat is cooking, combine the soy sauce, oyster sauce, Sambal, and water in a small bowl and whisk to combine.
- Add in the sauce to the skillet to deglaze the the pan and continue to stir.
- Add in the snap peas, bok choy and green onions. Reserve one of the green onions and dice for topping, if desired.
- Stir periodically to combine and allow the bok choy to wilt down.
- Add in sliced fresno chilis last and gently stir to combine for another 1-2 minutes.
- Serve with your favorite rice and top with reserved green onions.