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Beef strips and bright green broccoli in glossy stir-fry sauce over brown rice
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Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry

Better-than-takeout beef and broccoli in a glossy ginger-garlic sauce, over brown rice. 27g protein, 6.5mg zinc and double your day’s vitamin C — in 30 minutes.

27g Protein182mg Vitamin C6.5mg Zinc4mg Iron
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Prep15 min
Cook15 min
Calories431 kcal
Serves4

Key nutrients per serving

By The Recipe Seeker Kitchen

Updated 2026-09-17

Ingredients

4 servings

Instructions

4 steps · about 30 minutes total

  1. Sear the beef

    Heat a large wok or skillet over high heat until smoking. Add the beef in a single layer, season with pepper, and sear undisturbed 2 minutes before breaking it up. Cook until browned and crisp at the edges, about 5 minutes total. Remove to a plate.

  2. Char the broccoli

    In the same hot pan, add the broccoli with a splash of water and cover 2 minutes to steam-crisp — bright green and tender with bite. Uncover, add the bell pepper and cook 2 more minutes.

  3. Make it glossy

    Return the beef to the pan. Stir the soy sauce, honey, garlic and ginger together, pour over, and toss 1 minute. Drizzle in the cornstarch slurry and toss until the sauce turns glossy and clings to everything, about 1 minute.

  4. Serve

    Spoon over brown rice and finish with spring onions, sesame seeds and chili flakes. Serve immediately — stir-fry waits for no one.

Why this helps

The iron-zinc one-two punch

Beef is one of the richest food sources of both heme iron and zinc in highly absorbable forms. Here is the clever part: the broccoli and bell pepper deliver over 200% of your vitamin C for the day, which significantly boosts absorption of the iron in the same meal. Fast food that actually works for your body.

All about ProteinAll about Vitamin CAll about ZincAll about Iron

Nutrition facts

per serving · % DV
  • Calories 431 kcal22%
  • Protein 27g54%
  • Total Carbohydrate 44g16%
  • Dietary Fiber 5g18%
  • Total Sugars 0g0%
  • Total Fat 16g21%
  • Sodium 554mg24%

Vitamins & minerals

  • Iron 4mg22%
  • Calcium 81mg6%
  • Magnesium 101mg24%
  • Potassium 901mg19%
  • Vitamin C 182mg202%
  • Vitamin B12 5mcg208%
  • Folate 115mcg29%
  • Zinc 6.5mg59%

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Values are per serving (recipe makes 4).

Nutrition is an estimate calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient data and may vary by ingredient brand, preparation, and portion size.

Questions, answered

Can I use steak strips instead of ground beef?
Yes — flank or sirloin sliced thin against the grain. Sear 2 minutes per side and do not overcrowd, or it steams instead of browning.
How do I keep broccoli bright green?
The steam-then-sear method: 2 minutes covered with a splash of water, then uncovered to char. Overcooking is what turns it olive and sulfurous.
Is the cornstarch necessary?
It gives the signature glossy takeout sauce that clings instead of pooling. Arrowroot works too. Skip it and the sauce will be thinner but still tasty.
Can I make it gluten-free?
Swap soy sauce for tamari (check it is certified GF) and you are done — everything else is naturally gluten-free.
How do I meal-prep stir-fry?
Cook the beef and vegetables but slightly undercook the broccoli. Store rice separately; both keep 4 days. Reheat in a hot pan, not the microwave, to revive the texture.
Why is my beef tough?
Usually the pan was not hot enough, or it was overcrowded and steamed. High heat, single layer, and do not touch it for the first 2 minutes.
Can I add other vegetables?
Snap peas, mushrooms, baby corn and bok choy all work. Keep the total volume similar so the pan stays hot.
Is ground beef healthy here?
At 90% lean, a serving gives you 27g of complete protein plus highly absorbable heme iron and over half your daily zinc — the nutrients red meat is genuinely good at delivering.

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