Easy Mongolian Beef

Served over rice, this is an easy (35 minutes) version of one of our all time favorite meals at a restaurant. Problem is we are more than a half hour away from P.F. Chang’s, and that just isn’t a week night kind of meal. So I fixed that.

Thinly sliced steak is coated lightly with corn starch and flash fried until crisp at the edges then mixed with a sweet soy sauce full of garlic and ginger flavors and tossed with green onions.

In fact it was so good the last time I made it that we cleaned out the pan before anyone even thought about seconds.

Why This Recipe Works

It’s Mongolian beef, similar to what you’d get as takeout, served over rice.

There are only two key elements of takeout mongolian beef – the crispy edges on the beef, and a sauce that is both sweet and salty.

Corn starch is the “secret ingredient”. Corn starch creates a super thin crust that cooks really fast and forms a light crispy crust on the beef. This is also important because it provides some texture for the sauce to cling onto – otherwise the sauce will run right off of it and pool at the bottom of your bowl.

The sauce comes together in advance and sits waiting for the beef. The final step only takes a minute or two!

This is a really easy recipe – chances are you’ve got most (if not all) of the ingredients laying around: steak, corn starch, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, water, oil, green onions.

I’ve eaten mongolian beef so many times (at P.F. Chang’s) and have tinkered with it until it tastes a heck of a lot like the restaurant’s version (although I wouldn’t go so far as to say that it’s their recipe!). To me the crispy beef, green onions and sweet/salty sauce tastes a lot like what I remember.

Everyone’s always happy after eating this dish.

The Ingredients, One at a Time

Flank steak or flat iron steak

You’ll need a pound of meat. If it helps, go to the meat counter and ask them to slice it for you – make sure it’s sliced thin against the grain – this will save you some time if you are loath to slice the steak while it’s still raw.

Both of these cuts are very lean cuts and have a very definite grain which will make it easy for you to identify how to slice it against the grain. You can use sirloin – it just isn’t as crispy. Chuck has a different texture which doesn’t lend itself to quick frying.

Cornstarch

One quarter cup will do for a pound of beef. Do not use flour as a substitute. The texture of the batter changes when you use flour, becoming much heavier, almost pasty. Cornstarch, however, gives a nice thin and crispy coating when fried. This light coating is what keeps the sauce clinging to each piece of meat.

Low-sodium soy sauce

The sauce base consists of half a cup of soy sauce (I strongly recommend you use low sodium here. Full strength soy sauce will make your finished dish way too salty, and drown out the flavors of garlic, ginger and brown sugar).

If you need to keep it gluten free, substitute gluten-free tamari for your soy sauce, and be sure to check all your other ingredients as well.

Dark brown sugar

That’s three quarters of a cup. That sounds like a lot, right? It’s supposed to be a sweet sauce. The dark brown sugar adds sweetness, a nice shine, and a deeper molasses flavor. Light brown sugar would be fine if that’s all you have, but the sauce won’t taste as rich.

Garlic and ginger

2 cloves of garlic, minced, and 1 teaspoon of fresh ginger, minced. Jarred minced garlic and ginger work too. In a little oil, they get cooked before adding the liquid, which softens their sharp edge and makes them taste mellow and warm.

Water and oil

The half cup of water will thin the sauce so that it isn’t too syrupy. You’ll need 2 teaspoons of oil for the sauce and about a cup of oil for frying the beef. Use any neutral cooking oil.

Green onions

The sliced scallions have a sharp edge to them, which helps balance out all the sweet and salty sauce. They get tossed in with the sauce at the end, and only cook for a minute or two, so they’re still kind of crunchy.

Rice

Rice is for serving. Jasmine rice, long-grain white rice or brown rice all work.

How to Slice Against the Grain

Take a look at your steak and you will see a bunch of lines running through it (these are the muscle fibers). You’ll want to cut perpendicular (i.e., against) to these fibers (and not with them, or your beef will be chewy, not tender).

Use a sharp knife and slice the beef at a 45 degree angle to create slices that are wider/flatter. Aim for pieces that are about 1/4 of an inch. This will create more surface area for the corn starch to cling to.

Because this is a really quick beef recipe (total beef fry time: 2 to 3 minutes), it’s important that you properly prep your ingredients to ensure they all cook quickly and evenly.

How to Make Easy Mongolian Beef

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add garlic and ginger and whisk together as it sizzles. Add soy sauce, water and brown sugar and whisk to combine. Bring to a boil and cook about 5 minutes; remove from heat.

Sauce will seem very thin at this point but will thicken up with the addition of corn starch dredged beef.

Slice steak into 1/4″ thick slices by holding knife at a 45 degree angle to the board and cutting at an angle against the grain. Cut slices into strips.

Combine corn starch with beef strips in a medium sized bowl and toss to combine until beef is just coated. Set aside to allow corn starch to adhere (about 10 min).

Line plate with a paper towel to place beef once cooked.

Heat oil over medium-high heat in wok or large sauté pan until shimmering. Add beef and cook 2-3 min., stirring, until browned and crispy around the edges.

Remove beef and set aside on prepared plate and discard oil.

Add beef back into pan over medium heat and cook about a minute just to warm. Add sauce and green onions and toss to coat. Sauce will thicken up very quickly; make sure all beef is coated.

Serve immediately over rice.

Tips for Crispy Beef (Not Soggy Beef)

Note: I don’t have a wok and this recipe will work perfectly well in a large sauté pan (plan on using about 1 1/2 cups oil since it will be shallower).

Make sure that your pan is big enough to cook the beef without crowding (cook it in batches if need be), otherwise it will steam rather than fry and won’t get nice and crispy.

A stainless or carbon steel pan will also come in handy here as they hold on to their heat well which is also a plus when trying to get a nice quick sear on the beef.

The beef will also steam instead of fry and won’t get crispy if you don’t wait until the oil is shimmering before adding.

Don’t skip the 10 minute rest-it really helps the coating stay put on the beef!

The sauce will begin to take off some of the crispy factor as soon as it hits the beef so this dish is best in the first few minutes once served!

If you like your sauce a tad thicker: whisk together 1 t cornstarch with 1 T cold water, add to sauce and stir until thickened.

What to Serve with Mongolian Beef

Rice is the usual side dish. Jasmine rice, long grain white rice and brown rice will all absorb the extra sauce nicely.

A side of steamed broccoli or stir fried snap peas would be great.

Another option is to forego the rice and spoon the beef over lettuce leaves for a lower carb meal.

Ways to Change It Up

Add Heat – If you like some spice, I’d suggest adding a 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes (or a dash of sriracha, to taste) with everything else as you’re cooking. It complements the sweet of the sauce really nicely.

Make it less sweet – If you’re not a big sweet + savory kind of person, you can reduce the amount of brown sugar to 1/2 cup for a more savory recipe. I would however, not reduce the brown sugar any more than that as the sweet + salty combo really makes this dish Mongolian beef and otherwise it would just be beef covered in yummy soy sauce 😉

Add veggies – This recipe goes great with some broccoli, bell peppers or snap peas! Add these (cut into bite size pieces) into the pan right after you take the beef out to drain on the paper towel and pour off the oil. Stir fry until cooked to your liking, then add beef + sauce back into pan and stir until veggies are coated with sauce.

Make with chicken – You can absolutely make this recipe using chicken instead of beef. Simply follow the recipe the exact same way using thinly sliced chicken breasts or thighs (just cook all the way through before adding in the sauce).

Make it gluten free – Swap the soy sauce for GF tamari and just make sure all other ingredients are GF.

A Lighter Version

You can cook the cornstarch coated beef in a large non-stick skillet on high heat, turning until browned and crisp on edges (I still add a little oil, but technically it is not needed) or broil until browned, if deep frying in a cup of oil is not your preference.

Neither is quite as crisp as the fried beef, but will save some calories.

You could also use coconut aminos in place of the soy sauce, to save some calories and sodium. I think you would find that acceptable, too. Serving it over cauliflower rice and reducing the brown sugar to 1/2 cup would save additional calories.

Make Ahead, Storage and Reheating

This recipe can be made ahead!

The sauce can be made up to 2-3 days ahead and refrigerated until ready to use, and then you’ll just need to slice up and fry beef when you come home tired and busy and still have to make dinner!

Leftover Storage: Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Reheat in microwave OR for slightly better texture, reheat over medium heat on stovetop with splash of water, tossing frequently.

No matter how they’re reheated, the beef won’t be quite as crispy the 2nd+ times around as they are on their 1st night out.

What to Do with Leftovers

Leftovers don’t always happen in my household, but when they do, here are some of my favorite ways to use them.

• Rice bowls. The next day, build a quick rice bowl using your leftover meat.
• Lettuce wraps. Use the beef as a filling in lettuce wraps.
• Fried rice. Chop up the beef and add it to fried rice.
• Noodles/vegetables. Top your noodles or favorite vegetable with the beef.

Mongolian Beef FAQ

What cut of beef is best?

Flank steak or flat iron steak. They’re both fairly lean cuts and have a distinct grain which makes them easier to slice thinly (important since it will be flash fried and needs to be cooked through quickly!). If you can’t get either, you can make this recipe with sirloin but it won’t get as crispy.

Can I do this recipe in a saute pan?

Yes I do all the time! You will probably need a bit more oil (1 1/2 cups). Since it is shallower you’ll need more oil to fry the beef.

The beef didn’t turn out crispy, why?

Most likely the oil wasn’t hot enough or the pan was overcrowded. The beef pieces should sizzle when added to the wok and the oil should be shimmery hot. Also be sure to slice the beef thin! And eat right away, the corn starch coating does get soft pretty quickly once the sauce is tossed in.

The sauce didn’t thicken, what gives?

The sauce actually is supposed to be pretty runny coming off the boil. When it’s tossed with corn starch coated beef it will thicken considerably. And the longer it sits the thicker it will get. If you still like it thicker I’d add some corn starch mixed with cold water and heated into the sauce to further thicken.

Can I cut back on sugar?

You can reduce the brown sugar to 1/2 cup (instead of 3/4) it will still taste really good and will be a tad more savory.

Can I make the sauce ahead?

Yes it will keep 2 to 3 days in the refrigerator.

How long will any of this keep?

Leftover beef will keep up to 3 days refrigerated in an air tight container. You can warm on the stovetop with a sprinkle of water.

Is this recipe the P.F. Chang’s recipe?

I am nowhere close to being able to share their secret recipe, this is my version which I’ve been perfecting after going in time after time craving this dish!