Easy beef stir fry with black bean sauce is a Chinese dish that is quick to prepare and simple to cook. Ready in no time, making it ideal for mid week dining.
Our easy beef stir fry with green pepper, onions and a black bean sauce makes a great mid week dinner. Due to the simplicity of the recipe, and the speed of the cook itself, it’s ideal dining for those nights when we are short of time.
There is little required in the way of advanced preparation for this dish, just a case of cutting up some beef and vegetables and adding some delicious Chinese flavourings.
Working and eating out in China:
In my previous career I spent a year working in China. I ate out a lot as I simply did not have the facilities to cook for myself, which was a real pity as I would have loved to cook whilst living there. However, I never went anywhere without my notebook.
I would dissect as much of the food as possible, writing down everything I could see, smell and taste in a dish. With the hope that once back in the UK I could recreated the dishes in my own kitchen. For the most part I was successful, I think eating the local cuisine daily gave me a real understanding of the flavours and how to cook with them.
There was a lightness to the food I ate and enjoyed while living in China. None of the thick, gloopy sauces that you often associate with Chinese food here in the UK.
I was lucky enough to live in coastal cities, we had the freshest of seafood available to us. The joy of eating a simply steamed fish, with a side of stir fried vegetable. The stir fries in particular were perfection, and something I enjoyed eating daily!
Whether it was meat, seafood or vegetable I loved it all. However, you won’t get me to sing the praises of tofu – I was fed it many times and I can say quite honestly I don’t like it!
Lightly seared meat or vegetables with a little sauce. One of my favourite dishes was beef in black bean sauce. I love this dish and order it here in the UK. However, it often comes with too much sauce, at times closer to a gravy. What I have tried to create with this beef stir fry recipe is the dish I loved.
Recipe steps:
What is black bean sauce made from?
Black bean sauce is a Chinese sauce that is made from fermented, salt-preserved soya beans. It is a sauce that is used for cooking and adding into cooked dishes, rather than a table sauce of condiment.
What cut of beef can you use in stir fry?
The best cuts of beef to use are tender cuts like, sirloin, fillet, ribeye or rump steak as we have used in this recipe. These cuts work best as they are most suited for a fast cook. This means that provided they are not cooked past medium, the steak will remain tender and juicy.
Do not use stewing, or braising cuts of steak as these cuts require to be cooked low and slow. They are not suitable for stir frying!
Can I swap out the beef?
This recipe uses beef as this is one of my favourite dishes and how I most enjoy eating it. However, this recipe works just as well with chicken; pork; prawns or a mixture of vegetables.
If you want to get creative you could also use a mixture of ingredients, for example a combination of chicken and prawn.
Substitutions:
This dish uses Shaoxing rice wine which you can find in most Asian supermarkets. However, if you cannot find this, substitute with some dry sherry instead or at a push some dry white wine.
I use a wok when cooking stir fries at home. However, if you don’t have a wok a large, non-stick frying pan will work just as well.
Can this recipe be made ahead of time?
As with most stir fried foods, this easy beef stir fry is best made fresh and served immediately. Making it in advance does little to improve the dish, you want the vegetables to retain their crisp crunch. In my opinion there is nothing worse than soggy vegetables in a stir fry.
What can you serve with stir fry?
I like to keep things simple when serving stir fried beef. A little steamed rice or Egg Fried Rice are delicious accompaniments to this dish of stir fried beef.
However, noodles also work a treat with this dish. Cook the noodles in boiling water as per the packet instructions. Drain, then you can either stir fry the noodles in a little sesame oil with a handful of beansprouts and serve on the side.
Or alternatively add the boiled, drained noodles straight into the beef stir fry right at the end of the cook. Give it a good stir to ensure the noodles are covered in the sauce and serve immediately.
I also like to add some vegetable side dishes to the table when I make any stir fry. I think stir-frying vegetables brings the flavour right out, without they becoming too soft and overcooked.
Easy beef stir fry works really well with green vegetable like: green beans; mange tout; hispy cabbage. However, my particular favourite is stir fried beef paired with broccoli, It is delicious, beef and broccoli being a great food pairing. If you like green vegetables then why not try our Stir Fried Broccoli with Garlic or our Easy Stir Fried Pak Choy.
Pin this recipe:
Additional recipe suggestions:
If you like this recipe then try our Easy Stir Fried Chicken & Cashew Nuts, our Chinese Steamed Seabass, or our Pork & Peanut Stir Fry. As part of a Chinese banquet style meal this dish works well with our Chinese Stir Fry Broccoli or our Stir Fry Pak Choy.
For further great family dining ideas take a look at our Ultimate Guide to Family Dining.
Easy beef stir fry with black bean sauce
Ingredients
Marinated Beef
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 320 g rump steak (fat trimmed off and cut into strips)
Stir Fry
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 onion (chopped)
- 1 red pepper (sliced)
- 1 green pepper (sliced)
- 4 cloves garlic (crushed)
- 1 red chilli (finely chopped)
- 2.5 cm root ginger (grated)
- 2 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
- 1 tsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 50 ml water
- 4 tbsp black bean sauce
- 4 spring onions (sliced)
Instructions
Marinated Beef
- Place the oyster sauce and cornflour into a bowl and stir well to combine. Add the beef strips to the marinade and mix well to coat the beef in the marinade. Set aside and carry on preparing the rest of the vegetables for the dish.
Stir Fry
- Heat a wok over a high heat and pour the sunflower oil into the pan. Cook the steak strips in 2 batches so you don't overcrowd the pan. Cook for a minute on each side and remove from the wok onto a plate and set aside.
- Add more sunflower oil into the pan if necessary and add the onion, green and red peppers to the pan or wok and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Next add the garlic, chilli and ginger to the mix and stir fry for a further minute.
- Next pour in the Shaoxing rice wine, dark and light soy sauces and water and continue to stir fry for a further 2 minutes.
- Spoon in the black bean sauce and return the steak strips to the wok. Stir fry for a minute to heat everything. Serve and garnish with sliced spring onions.
Notes
• Please note that the nutrition information provided below is approximate and meant as a guideline only •
Cat | Curly's Cooking
Ooh yes please. This looks my kind of meal! I love black bean but I don’t make it myself but now I will make sure I do.
Janice Pattie
This looks incredible. I don’t usually think of using beef in a stir fry but I have a real longing now to make this recipe.
Lesley
Thank you Janice, this is so quick to make as you don’t want to overcook the beef. This is one of my favourite stir-fry dishes. Lesley x
Chloe Edges
I love this. I keep putting off making black bean as I find it a bit overwhelming but this looks much more paired back. This will be my next Chinese feast!
Lesley
Thank you Chloe. This is a quick cook version. I have in the past made my own black bean sauce, but mid week I just don’t have time for that. Instead I prefer this one, where you use a shop bought sauce and pimp it up a bit. Lesley