Chinese Beef and Onion Stir Fry

4.75 from 16 votes

Beef and onion stir fry features incredibly tender strips of beef stir-fried with onions in a delicious savory sauce that takes everything to the next level! It’s incredibly quick and easy, and my go-to recipe for busy weeknights!

Prep Time15

Cook Time10

Total Time25

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Chinese

Servings:

Calories: 257kcal

Author: Joyce Lee

Ingredients

300 g sirloin steak (or rib eye, flank steak or blade steak)
½ white onion (or yellow onion)
4-5 slices ginger
3 cloves garlic (minced or sliced thinly)
1 stalk green onion (cut into 2 inch pieces)

Marinade

1 tablespoon soy sauce
½ tablespoon Shaoxing cooking wine
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon cornstarch (added after marinating)
1 tablespoon oil (added after marinating)

Sauce

1 tablespoon soy sauce (low sodium)
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 teaspoon sugar
1½ tablespoons oyster sauce
½ tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
½ tablespoon Shaoxing cooking wine (or dry sherry/rice wine)
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce (for color, can sub with regular soy sauce)
½ cup water

Instructions

Preparation

Peel and slice ½ white onion (or yellow onion), and separate the segments. Set it aside for later
Peel and thinly slice 3 cloves garlic. Alternatively, you can also mince it as well.
Slice 4-5 slices ginger and set it aside for later.
Cut off the root part of 1 stalk green onion and discard it. Then cut the green onion into 2-inch pieces. For the chonky white part, slice it in half lengthwise again. Set this aside for later.

Marinate Beef

Thinly slice the beef against the grain and put it in a bowl.
(Optional) To make it easier to slice, you can put it in the freezer for 15 minutes to firm it up slightly.
Add 1 tablespoon soy sauce, ½ tablespoon Shaoxing cooking wine, 2 tablespoons water, and 1 teaspoon sesame oil into the bowl with the sliced beef and marinate it for 15 minutes.
Do not add the cornstarch and oil yet.
Once you have finished marinating the meat, add in 1 teaspoon cornstarch and mix well. This will create a velvety layer that will seal in the beef's moisture.
Once the cornstarch is mixed evenly with the beef, add 1 tablespoon oil to it and mix well again and set it aside.

Make the Stir Fry Sauce

In a small bowl, mix 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 1 tablespoon corn starch until there are not lumps.
Then add in 1 teaspoon sugar, 1½ tablespoons oyster sauce, ½ tablespoon hoisin sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, ½ tablespoon Shaoxing cooking wine, and 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce (or reg. soy sauce) and mix everything well.
Then mix in ½ cup water and set it aside for later.

Stir Fry

Use a large frying pan or a wok and set it on the stove on high heat.
Once the pan is very hot, add in the oil and sliced beef. Don't be shy with the oil, it will help the beef not stick to the pan and sear it better. I use approximately 3-4 tablespoons of oil.
Spread the beef out throughout the surface of the hot pan to brown it to create an initial sear. Then stir fry the beef until it is about 90% cooked, approx. 2-4 minutes depending on how thinly you sliced it. Don't worry it will cook the rest of the way in the sauce at the end. Remove it from the pan and set it aside for later.
Add a bit more oil into the pan, and the ginger slices. Toast the ginger for 1 minute until it is slightly brown.
Then add in the onion slices and ginger and stir fry it until it is soft and slightly brown. Approx. 2 minutes.
Push the onions, ginger and garlic to the side of the pan.
Mix the stir-fry sauce again (cornstarch will settle to the bottom), and pour the sauce into the hot pan. Keep stirring the sauce in the pan until the sauce has turned thick and it has turned from a milky color to a dark brown color.
Once the sauce is thick, mix the onions into the sauce, and add the beef back in as well. Add the green onions as well and stir fry everything for about 1 minute.
Plate and enjoy with steamed rice!

Notes

Dark Soy Sauce for Color: Dark soy sauce is used in the marinade to get that dark brown color. In case you don’t have it and can’t find it, you can substitute it for soy sauce instead.
Preparation Is Crucial: Once you start stir frying, the process will happen very quickly, so it's important to have everything on hand to make it a smoother and easier process.
Freeze Beef To Make It Easier to Slice: To make the beef firmer, and easier to slice, I like to put it in the freezer for 15 minutes before I start to slice it.
Slice Against the Grain: When prepping your beef, it's important to slice against the grain. This breaks up the muscle fibers and results in more tender beef.
Marinate for Maximum Flavor: Let the beef sit in the marinade for at least fifteen minutes before cooking, but the longer you marinade, the more flavor you'll get.
Velvet Your Beef With Cornstarch: After marinating, coat your beef slices in cornstarch. This technique, known as velveting, gives the beef a silky texture and locks in moisture when frying. Make sure you add the cornstarch after you finish marinating, this will ensure the beef will full absorb all the marinade first for the best flavor.
Sear the Beef Slices to 90%: Sear the beef on high heat until it's about ninety percent done, then remove it from the pan before making the sauce. It's okay if you see a bit of pink. This guarantees that the beef won't overcook and become tough.
Baking Soda Method: To get that very tender beef like you get in Chinese restaurants, you can opt to mix in ½ teaspoon of baking soda with 2 tablespoons of water into the sliced beef and let it sit for about 15 minutes. But make sure to do this before the marinating step because you need to rinse the baking soda off of the beef very well, and squeeze out any excess water or it will have a funky flavor and smell. I personally skip this step because I find adding water in the marinade is enough to get the beef tender, as long as you slice it against the grain.

Nutrition