This beef onion stir-fry is one of those recipes that doesn’t require much more than the ingredients in the name—beef…and onions!
If you’ve been cooking with us for a while, you likely have all the other ingredients already. Kitchen basics like baking soda, cornstarch, and ketchup (yup, ketchup!) combine with a few of our Essential Chinese Pantry ingredients to create an incredibly delicious dish.
Inspired by a Chinatown Menu
If you live in or near Chinatown, try finding this beef onion stir-fry at a restaurant! It’s savory, a little tangy, and so tasty over rice.
Some of my favorite Chinatown joints are those that specialize in lunch specials and late night fare. Such places serve quick, delicious stir-fries, usually served over a big pile of rice.
I was perusing one such restaurant’s menu the other day, and saw “Beef and Onions” in a long list of no-nonsense yet mouthwatering dishes.
I set to experimenting with my own version, and came up with this recipe, which got resounding approval from the family peanut gallery (not always an easy task!)
These quick stir-fries are some of my favorite recipes to record, and this one is no exception.
A Super Quick Cooking Recipe
You won’t stand at the stove longer than 5 minutes to make this recipe. Seriously.
Marinate the beef, and premix the sauce ingredients. Then simply sear the beef and onions separately, simmer and thicken the sauce, and mix everything together!
It really is as simple as that.
What Cut of Beef to Use for Stir-fry
In our opinion, flank steak is the most ideal cut of beef for a stir-fry. That’s what we call for in this recipe. However, you could also use sirloin or even inexpensive beef chuck.
Whatever cut of beef you use, just make sure to thinly slice it against the grain. In other words, look at the muscle fibers in the beef, and make your slices perpendicular to those fibers.
It helps to use a sharp knife, and to angle that knife 45° so you can create wider, thinner slices.
We’re using baking soda in the marinade here to make the beef extra tender. Check out our post on how to prepare beef for stir-fries for more information!
Beef & Onion Stir-fry: Recipe Instructions
In a medium bowl, add the flank steak, baking soda, cornstarch, oil, oyster sauce, and water. Mix until the liquid has been absorbed, and set aside to marinate for at least 15 minutes, or up to 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, ketchup, oyster sauce, sugar, sesame oil, and water. Set aside.
Heat a wok over high heat until smoking. Add 1 tablespoon of oil, and spread the beef in the wok in a single layer. Sear the meat, undisturbed, for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until browned.
Stir-fry for an additional 15-30 seconds, until about 75% cooked. Remove from the wok and set aside.
Add another tablespoon of oil to the wok, along with the onions.
Stir-fry until the onions are seared and slightly blistered, 60-90 seconds. Remove from the wok.
Add the prepared sauce to the wok, and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 15 seconds, and then stir in the beef and onions for another 30 seconds.
Serve over rice.
Beef Onion Stir-fry
Ingredients
For the beef & marinade:
- 1 pound flank steak (thinly sliced against the grain)
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon oil (any neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola)
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon water
For the rest of the dish:
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons ketchup
- 2 teaspoons oyster sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 10 ounces small onions (sliced into wedges; about 3 small onions)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, add the flank steak, baking soda, cornstarch, oil, oyster sauce, and water. Mix until the liquid has been absorbed, and set aside to marinate for at least 15 minutes, or up to 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, ketchup, oyster sauce, sugar, sesame oil, and water. Set aside.
- Heat a wok over high heat until smoking. Add 1 tablespoon of oil, and spread the beef in the wok in a single layer. Sear the meat, undisturbed, for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until browned. Stir-fry for an additional 15-30 seconds, until about 75% cooked. Remove from the wok and set aside.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the wok, along with the onions. Stir-fry until the onions are seared and slightly blistered, 60-90 seconds. Remove from the wok.
- Add the prepared sauce to the wok, and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 15 seconds, and then stir in the beef and onions for another 30 seconds. Serve over rice.
Hi Sarah
What do you mean by “ketchup” ?
Is it tomato ketchup or sweet soy sauce? (In our language, ketchup means sweet soy sauce)
Thanks
Tomato Ketchup!
I love quick and easy stir fries and this one is great! I tend to add other veggies as well and broccoli and baby bok choy is perfect with it. I also add thai chili peppers bc “spice is food life” lol. Thanks for the recipe and also excited for your cookbook that will be out!
Love this one. I often sub onions for another veg as the sauce is great with anything. Green capsicums are a fave.
I wish I can say the same, I am not a big fan of green bell pepper :-)
So happy you’re enjoying it!
Hey! Found an old Boston Butt in the freezer. Has the bone in. Was planning on using a bit for this recipe and the rest for the curry beef – will Butt Roast work for this recipe?
Boston butt is pork, but it could work here.
Hello, Yes Ive made this as so many of all your delicious recepies. I made it slightly different. I have diabetes type 2 and I can’t have carbohydrates, once in a while, I can, but most of the time not.So I put next to your ingredients, shitakes,green beans,red pepper, a chilli pepper and chestnut mushrooms. It became a big meal and I ate everything! Thank you so much for all of you and your delicious recepies. I also wander if there is a cookbook?Maybe a family cookbook I can buy through The Woks of Life? Right now I print most of the recepies and keep them in a map. Most of the recepies I made so, that I can enjoy them without the rice or other carbohydrates.Thank you so much for being such a special cooking family. Keep doing what your doing çause your doing great!
Greetings from the Netherlands!
Thank you for sharing, Marjolein! Our first ever published cookbook is actually coming out this fall—November 1! We will notify everyone of when it will be available for pre-order so you can be sure to get a copy as soon as it comes out. :)
Delicious recipe Sarah!
The beef was so tender and the onions remained tender-crisp with a wonderful rich velvety sauce – just the perfect amount and consistency for my preference.
So quick, so tasty and so hard to have just one serving! I even forgo the rice!
Along with your Dad’s Beef and Broccoli dish, this will find a home in my regular rotation! when there is a hankering for a beef stir-fry.
Thank you to an amazing and creative family who share their wisdom and expertise so graciously!
Thank you so much, Alex! :)