Takeout-style broccoli with garlic sauce is a great dish to have with any meal. Served with some white or brown rice, it’s tasty and guilt-free, and it’s easier than you’d think to emulate that restaurant flavor!
Chinese takeout definitely has its place as a treat, and no one knows more than me that there’s nothing wrong with indulging in an egg roll, a plate of pork fried rice, or fried chicken wings every once in awhile. That said, broccoli with garlic sauce is my go-to Chinese takeout dish when I feel like I haven’t been getting enough veggies.
An American Chinese Takeout Dish
I want to share a little history about this dish and, for that matter, any garlic sauce or Yu Xiang (“fish fragrance” style dish of meat and/or vegetables with sauce) dish from a take-out restaurant. It’s pretty obvious, but all of these dishes are clearly Americanized versions in every sense.
First, broccoli is a western vegetable, and second, the garlic sauce has been altered slightly to suit American tastes, and perhaps formulated to be easier to make by Chinese takeout cooks. If you want an authentic version of garlic sauce, check out Judy’s authentically-flavored chicken with garlic sauce recipe.
All that said, this broccoli with garlic sauce is GOOD! It’s slightly tart from the rice vinegar, balanced with the addition of a little sugar and the (optional) kick from some homemade chili oil. It’s a great alternative and change of pace from our popular garlicky broccoli, which serves as more of a traditional side dish.
Buying Fresh Broccoli
If you eat broccoli often, the last thing I’ll leave you with are some great tips I learned from Judy on how to select a good broccoli crown:
- Check the bottom of your broccoli stems. They should be full and white. Avoid broccoli with hollow stalks or brown streaks, which means the broccoli is not fresh.
- If your broccoli tastes bitter after it’s cooked, it was probably not fresh. I know it’s after the fact and not a ton of help, but better to know for next time!
- Look for dark green buds. Avoid any broccoli that has been heavily trimmed or has yellowing buds, which is an indication that the spoiled parts may have been trimmed off to fool unsuspecting customers into thinking it’s fresh!
Here are some pictures of the bottoms of broccoli crowns and the cross section of the stem. You can see that the bottom of the broccoli crown on the left has some yellowing at the core. Be sure to avoid any broccoli crowns with discolored stems and look for a bright white solid stem like you see on the right!
If you want an alternative to the usual western vegetables, learn more about Chinese vegetables and what to do with them on our Chinese Leafy Green Vegetables glossary page.
Now that you have your super fresh broccoli, let’s cook!
Broccoli with Garlic Sauce: Recipe Instructions
Wash the broccoli thoroughly and set aside.
Mix the dark soy sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sugar, hot chicken stock (or vegetable stock), sesame oil, and ground white pepper, and set aside.
Heat the wok over high heat. Add the vegetable oil, garlic, and broccoli and quickly stir-fry so the garlic doesn’t burn.
Stir fry for 15 seconds, and add the Shaoxing wine around the perimeter of the wok. Give everything a quick stir and add in the sauce mixture.
Let the sauce come to a boil, and mix the cornstarch and water together to make a slurry. You can turn the heat down slightly and cook the broccoli a bit longer before adding the corn starch slurry if you like your broccoli softer.
Once the broccoli is cooked to your liking, add the cornstarch slurry slowly while stirring the broccoli and sauce constantly. Let the sauce cook and thicken until it coats the back of a spoon.
If you like a thick sauce, add more cornstarch and water. If you like your sauce thinner, add less cornstarch and water. If you’d like, stir in the chili oil at this point.
Serve your fresh homemade broccoli with garlic sauce!
You’ll never go back to a Chinese takeout restaurant for broccoli with garlic sauce after you try this dish at home!
Takeout Style Broccoli with Garlic Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 pound broccoli (cut into florets)
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1½ teaspoons rice wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 3/4 cup hot chicken or vegetable stock (to keep the dish vegetarian)
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 cloves minced garlic (about a tablespoon)
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch (mixed with 1½ tablespoons water)
- 1 teaspoon homemade chili oil (optional)
Instructions
- Wash the broccoli thoroughly and set aside. Mix the soy sauces, rice wine vinegar, sugar, stock, sesame oil, and ground white pepper, and set aside.
- Heat the wok over high heat. Add the vegetable oil, garlic, and broccoli and quickly stir-fry so the garlic doesn’t burn.
- Stir fry for 15 seconds, and add the Shaoxing rice wine around the perimeter of the wok. Give everything a quick stir and add in the sauce mixture. Let the sauce come to a boil, and mix the cornstarch and water together to make a slurry. You can turn the heat down slightly and cook the broccoli a bit longer before adding the corn starch slurry if you like your broccoli softer.
- You can turn the heat down slightly and cook the broccoli a bit longer before adding the corn starch slurry if you like your broccoli softer, add the cornstarch slurry slowly while stirring the broccoli and sauce constantly. Let the sauce cook and thicken until it coats the back of a spoon. If you like a thick sauce, add more cornstarch and water. If you like your sauce thinner, add less cornstarch and water. If you’d like, stir in the chili oil at this point. Serve!
nutrition facts
Very happy to have come upon this recipe. It turned out fantastic and honestly better than take out I’ve had in the past.
Hey Dave C, glad you found us and enjoyed this classic broccoli with garlic sauce. Hope you try some of our other recipes!
Loved this! Subbed oyster sauce for dark soy since I didn’t have any. I’d make this again! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Donna, my father always used to say that you can’t go wrong with using oyster sauce!
The sauce for this broccoli is so good! Thinking of adding some sliced mushrooms next time.
Hi Katie, great suggestion to add some mushroom for a little variation.
I made this broccoli dish with the oven baked five spice chicken. Very flavorful and quick and easy. I loved it. I also cooked half a cup of basmati rice in a cup of chicken bone broth and one teaspoon of the five spice powder. Oh my! Super delicious!
Hi Lauri, that’s a delicious combo!
I didn’t have dark soy but everything else was by the book. Really good recipe but lacked a punch. Maybe that’s what the dark soy brings to the party. Will be making again.
Hi Ryan, dark soy definitely helps, but if you like strong tastes, you can up the quantity of the spices including the sugar for balance. ;-)
Awesome recipe. You’re my go to when I want some Chinese!
Yesss Joi!
pretty good! the instructions weren’t very clear though.
Hi Jess, the recipe is super simple, but I did add some clarification to cook the broccoli a bit longer to your liking (soft or crunchy) before adding the cornstarch slurry. Happy cooking!
Made this tonight when I realized we had an extra head of broccoli in the fridge – made a half recipe, which was plenty saucy. It was so good, whole family went to town on it. I threw the broccoli in for a half minute or so before adding the garlic, to let it cook a little longer. Otherwise no changes. This will be going into our regular rotation for sure!
Hi Charlie, broccoli is a very healthy vegetable so excellent to hear that you and your family liked the recipe!