This spicy flank steak stir fry is super flavorful and sure to be a family favorite dinner. It’s made with an Asian marinade full of a variety of spices and then browned in a cast iron skillet. The tender pieces of meat goes great with rice or eat as is with your favorite vegetables for a lower carb dinner.
You might also like this Asian beef and cabbage noodles recipe!
I love cooking with my cast iron skillet especially with recipes like this spicy flank steak stir fry. The beef itself is really flavorful but when you cook it in the cast iron skillet it browns perfectly and the sauce really clings to the crispy slices. It’s just like the Chinese restaurants make it.
My family loves this recipe and we have been eating it at least once a month. One time we made it two days in a row because my husband and I were craving it. I’ve also made it with leftover lamb and pork roasts. So if you like this recipe try using it with leftover roasts too!
Recipe ingredients I used.
The simple ingredients I used for this recipe was olive oil, yellow onion, green onion, beef flank steak, cornstarch, sesame oil, soy sauce, beef broth, Swerve brown sweetener, salt, black pepper, chili garlic sauce, cumin and cilantro.
This is the chili garlic sauce that I used. You can find it in most grocery stores and even Walmart. I like using it because it adds some acid, heat and garlic to the dish.
That way you only have a add a bit of this sauce and not garlic cloves, hot pepper flakes or rice vinegar.
Note I used Swerve brown sugar sweetener because I was trying to keep the carbs down. However you can just use regular brown sugar if you don’t care about carbs.
As I mentioned above I’ve made this recipe with both leftover lamb and pork roast and it worked well but I like the results the most with this fresh flank steak. You could also try skirt steak or hanger steak as a substitute for flank.
How to make spicy flank steak stir fry.
Step 1: Place the beef flank steak in the freezer for 15 minutes before starting the recipe. Then take it out and slice thinly against the grain or tough fibers into strips. Freezing the meat first makes it easier to slice.
Below you can see how the grain which is the lines of muscle is running from left to right and I cut the meat from north to south. That is cutting against the grain or muscle fibers and will make the meat more tender.
Step 2: Transfer steak slices into a bowl. Mix the cornstarch, soy sauce, sesame oil, olive oil, black pepper, cumin, chili garlic sauce and brown sugar sweetener. Spoon over the meat and mix well. Set aside to marinate for about 15 minutes while you brown the onions.
The cornstarch helps the meat attain that crisp texture when cooking.
Step 3: Get out a large cast iron skillet and heat to medium high heat. Once you get the skillet nice and hot add the olive oil and then onions. Turn the heat down to medium heat and saute the onions until nicely browned.
Step 4: Add the marinated beef strips into a single layer in the hot skillet. Stir fry beef for about 10-12 minutes in the skillet. I like to only flip the pieces a few times so the meat gets a nice crust and is brown and crispy.
Note that I have a large 12 inch skillet. If you might have to cook this dish in batches if you use a smaller one.
Step 5: In a small bowl mix ¼ cup beef broth, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil. Add it to the pan and mix well. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
Scatter the green onion and cilantro over top, give it a mix and take off the stove. Serve as is or with white or brown rice to complete the meal.
Store leftovers in an airtight container. Please scroll down for the printable recipe card.
I like to watch my carbs so I ate this with green beans as shown below but you could also use low carb veggies like broccoli, asparagus, brussel sprouts, zucchini, bell peppers, mushrooms, snow peas or just a green salad. My family ate it with white rice but you could also use cauliflower rice.
To make this recipe with leftover cooked roasts.
Slice the cooked beef, lamb or pork into thin slices and use the same marinade. Set aside while you brown the onions.
Cook the recipe the same as above but just don’t cook the meat for 10 minutes. When you add it to the pan after the onions have browned, turn the heat up to medium high and try to brown the meat quickly.
You just need to cook it for a few minutes and then continue with the sauce, green onions and cilantro.
We made this with leftover smoked lamb and it was really tasty!
More easy and tasty flank steak recipes to try.
My mom used to make an easy blue cheese marinated flank steak that you grill and it was a summer staple. Since then I’ve added the following amazing recipes using flank steak to this blog.
- garlic balsamic marinated flank steak
- Thai marinated flank steak
- air fryer beef jerky
- beef jerky in the smoker
- hot pepper steak stir fry
I hope you give this beef stir fry recipe a chance it is really full of flavor and restaurant quality meal. As I mentioned we have eaten this quite a lot lately.
If you find you really like it, give it a chance with some leftover roasted meat. I’m always trying to find way not to waste and this was a good one. Enjoy!
Spicy Flank Steak Stir Fry Recipe
This delicious spicy flank steak stir fry is full of flavor and sure to be a family favorite recipe. This flavorful beef dish makes for a hearty weeknight meal.
Ingredients
Meat and Marinade
- 1 pound flank steak, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon Swerve brown sugar sweetener
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce
- 1 tablespoon cumin
Stir Fry
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, sliced
- ¼ cup beef broth
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 green onion diced
- ⅓ cup cilantro leaves
Instructions
- Place the flank steak in the freezer for 15 minutes before cooking. Take it out and slice cutting across the grain into thin slices. Place into a big bowl. The grain is the muscle fibers and they tend to go in one direction. You want to cut perpendicular to cut the fibers and make the meat more tender.
- Add the rest of marinade ingredients into a meidum bowl and mix well. Then spoon into the bowl with the beef and mix well. Let the meat marinade for 15 minutes while you cook the onions.
- Heat up a large cast iron skillet to medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and when hot, add the onions. Saute until golden brown.
- By now the meat should be done marinading. Spoon all of the meat mixture into the pan with the onions in a single layer. Stir well and cook for about 10 minutes until the beef slices are browned and cooked through. I like to only flip the pieces a few times so the meat gets brown and crispy.
- In a small bowl mix the ¼ cup of broth, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil. Add it to the pan and mix well to make a bit of sauce. Then mix in the green onions and cilantro.
- Take off the heat and serve with rice to complete the meal.***
- Store leftovers in an airtight container.
Notes
I like to watch my carbs so I ate this with green beans as shown below but you could also use other veggies like fresh broccoli floretsi, asparagus, brussel sprouts, mushrooms, snow peas, bell peppers or just a green salad. My family ate it with cooked rice but you could also use cauliflower rice.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 339Total Fat: 18gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 90mgSodium: 852mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 1gSugar: 5gProtein: 33g
Leave a Reply