Mongolian Beef is easy to make in just 30 minutes, crispy, sweet and garlicky with flavors you love from your favorite Chinese restaurant.
When it comes to favorite Chinese takeout, Mongolian Beef is at the top of the list. The delicious sauce of this popular Beef Dish can be used to make Ground Mongolian Beef and Mongolian Beef Burritos too!
Mongolian Beef is very flavorful and takes just 30 minutes to make from start to finish including all the slicing of the meat! It also uses basic pantry ingredients, so you don’t need to worry about running to the store today for oyster sauce or hoisin sauce. Everything in this recipe is available in every grocery store, so it makes the perfect weeknight dinner idea!
It will blow you away how much flavor you can get in less than half an hour and without any marinating or tons of ingredients. Thin cut steak is quick-fried with a cornstarch coating to give it the signature crispy edges that makes this dish so amazing. Some aromatics are sauteed in the beef fat and then sauce is added to soak up the savory, beefy flavor. Finally the beef gets coated in the amazing sauce and it’s finished with some crisp fresh onions.
This authentic stir fried Mongolian Steak recipe is popular with adults and kids alike for a number of reasons. One, people love anything that tastes like Chinese takeout. Two, the sweet flavor of the dark brown sugar mixed with the salty soy sauce and the strong ginger and garlic is incredibly addicting. Three, you get to enjoy it over a mountain of Steamed Rice, which soaks up all the savory sauce and will take you to your happy place.
What is Mongolian Beef?
Mongolian Beef is a Taiwanese dish that originated where Mongolian BBQ cuisine was popular. In American-Chinese restaurants, it consists of thinly sliced red meat, usually flank steak, that is wok seared with green onions in a savory, sticky sweet sauce made with soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic and ginger. It is usually not spicy, and it can be paired with other vegetables and served over white rice.
Why should you make Mongolian Beef at home?
There are many benefits to making copycat versions of your favorite take out dishes at home. The obvious one is to stretch your dollar. You can typically serve an entire family at home for the cost of one or two restaurant entrees. You can tailor the seasonings and ingredients for dietary and taste preferences. Your homemade recipe will typically be much healthier than the takeout version, and the best part is you don’t have to sacrifice any of the flavor!
How to Make Mongolian Beef
- Steak: Cut the flank steak into ¼ inch thick pieces, slicing against the grain. Place the meat and cornstarch in a large sealed plastic bag and coat the meat completely.
- Fry: Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium high heat. Sear the coated steak pieces in batches. Do not overcrowd the pan or your meat won’t get crispy. Transfer the seared steak to a plate.
- Sauce: In the same pan, cook the ginger and garlic until fragrant. Add the soy sauce, water, and brown sugar and let the mixture come to a boil.
- Finish: Stir the steak back into the sauce and allow the sauce to thicken. If your sauce isn’t thickening, add a cornstarch slurry and let the mixture simmer for a minute. Add green onions to the beef mixture and stir. Serve over rice and a side of steamed veggies
Classic Chinese Takeout Sides
FAQs for Mongolian Beef
Flank steak is the common cut for Mongolian Beef recipes. You can use any quick cooking beef cut such as skirt steak, top round, or tri-tip steak.
Mongolian Beef sauce contains soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, water and cornstarch to thicken. The sauce ingredients are simple and you probably have most of it in your pantry right now.
This Mongolian Beef recipe will have crispy seared edges and tender beef on the inside due to cutting the flank against the grain and quick cooking it. You want to make sure not to overcrowd the pan when you are frying or it will create steam and you won’t get crispy beef.
You want to slice the flank into ¼ inch strips against the grain. If you feel uncomfortable with cutting the steak thinly enough and have an hour or so notice, place the steak in the freezer for one hour. This will freeze it just enough that slicing it will be as easy as slicing a vegetable. The meat will firm up enough that you can slice it even thinner if you’d like.
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Key Ingredients
- Steak: Flank steak works well for this recipe because it cooks quickly while staying juicy and flavorful. Plus it’s a pretty inexpensive red meat. You can also use skirt steak, hangar steak, or other thin cut of steak for the same amazing flavors in this recipe.
- Brown Sugar: The addition of molasses to the dark brown sugar adds to the depth of flavor in this dish. You can use light brown sugar if that is what you have on hand, and you’ll still have a tasty meal. However, the slightly bitter molasses flavor does make a noticeable difference in the sauce.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic adds a lot of aromatic flavor to Chinese cuisine, and complements the sweetness of the Mongolian beef sauce.
- Ginger: Freshly grated ginger gives a slight kick to the recipe to balance the sweetness. If you don’t have fresh ginger, you can substitute ½ teaspoon ginger powder, and add it with the soy sauce.
- Soy Sauce: Always use low sodium soy sauce in Asian dishes, as it allows you to control the amount of salt. You can always add a little more to your taste.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch acts as a thickener when the sauce comes together at the end of this recipe. By coating the beef in it, the cornstarch will cook with the meat and add a crispy coating as well.
Can you make Mongolian Beef ahead of time?
While you can technically make Mongolian Beef ahead of time, it is definitely better when you make it fresh. This dish is known for the signature crispy beef and you will lose that tasty crispy goodness when the dish is reheated. However, one way to make the steak easier to cut is to cut it while it’s really cold, so you can pop the beef in the freezer an hour ahead of starting the dish.
Variations
- Spicy: Make the sauce spicy by adding some red chili flakes, some fresh Thai chiles, or chili garlic sauce. You can also serve it with some Chinese hot mustard or Horseradish Sauce for a spicy creamy blend.
- Meat: Instead of beef, thinly sliced pork, chicken, or even baked tofu would all taste amazing with this savory sweet sauce. Keep in mind that chicken and pork need to be cooked all the way through instead of just being seared like beef. You could also use ground beef or other ground meat.
- Veggies: For a quick and easy one-pan beef dinner idea, you can toss in some popular stir fry veggies like pea pods, shredded carrots, broccoli, and bok choy. Cook the veggies until crisp tender, then toss in at the end with green onions.
More Classic Asian Beef Dishes
How to Store
- Serve: For the best flavor and texture, serve this dish right away while the edges of the beef are still crispy and the onions are still slightly crunchy. It can be at room temperature for up to 2 hours.
- Store: Let any leftover Mongolian Beef cool down and then store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days in an airtight container. It’s best to reheat it on the stove in a skillet.
- Freeze: Freeze Mongolian Beef up to 3 months in a sealed container. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Ingredients
- 1 pound flank steak
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger , minced
- 1 tablespoon garlic , minced
- 1/3 cup lite soy sauce , low sodium
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 4 stalks scallions , green parts only, cut into 2 inch pieces
Instructions
- Slice the flank steak against the grain (the grain is the length of the steak) the long way in ¼ inch thick pieces and add it to a ziploc bag with the cornstarch.
- Press the steak around in the bag making sure each piece is fully coated with cornstarch and leave it to sit.
- Add the canola oil to a large frying pan and heat on medium high heat.
- Add the steak, shaking off any excess corn starch, to the pan in a single layer and cook on each side for 1 minute.
- If you need to cook the steak in batches because your pan isn't big enough do that rather than crowding the pan, you want to get a good sear on the steak, and if you crowd the pan, your steak with steam instead of sear.
- When the steak is done cooking remove it from the pan.
- Add the ginger and garlic to the pan and sauté for 10-15 seconds.
- Add the soy sauce, water and dark brown sugar to the pan and let it come to a boil.
- Add the steak back in and let the sauce thicken for 20-30 seconds.
- The cornstarch we used on the steak should thicken the sauce, if you find it isn’t thickening enough add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to 1 tablespoon of cold water and stir to dissolve the cornstarch and add it to the pan.
- Add the green onions, stir to combine everything, and cook for a final 20-30 seconds.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Nutrition
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Photos used in a previous version of this post.
Fantastic recipe!!! It had the pickiest eater in the family going for seconds. The sauce is wonderful! I had a busy day on the road yesterday and picked up a store bought rotisserie chicken for dinner. Knowing the lack of enthusiasm for supermarket rotisserie, I made the sauce, popped the chicken in the oven and basted it for 20 minutes with the sauce. After carving the chicken I poured the remaining sauce and drippings over the chicken pieces. Mongolian Chicken, voila!!!
Such a great idea!
Update:
I shared this recipe with friends and family…OK, only the ones I like. Everyone is getting inventive with it, even a little competitive!
A friend of mine made the recipe and wanted seconds but ran out of cooked rice. What’s a guy to do??! He got a pack of Ramen noodles, ditched the seasoning and threw it in a pot of boiling water with some broccoli florets. Cooked noodles, drained them and mixed with the beef and sauce. Can you say OOOH…LA…LA!!!! Because that’s what he said!
Fantastic!
I’ve made this recipe a few times and it’s delicious. Everybody took seconds. Terrific recipe
Instead of beef, I used a pork loin that needed to be cooked. Turned out FANTASTIC!
Excellent! So easy to prepare and delicious. I already had all the ingredients on hand. I served this with a side of white rice and the family loved it! Can’t wait to make it again.
Hi Sabrina,
What type of steak should be used? I tried London broil steak as it was the cheapest one and it was very tough. Is it possible to make it softer?
I used flank steak for this recipe.
Added bok choy and onion and it was fantastic!
Would love to add those two ingredients. Some of my favorites. TY.
Hilarious when people tell someone what their recipe “should” be. Thanks for doing and posting this, I love my Mongolian beef sweet and simple. This recipe is it. Velveting the meat with the corn starch and sear makes it just the way I want it. Too many forget to use the words “to me”.
Excellent!!
This is a very straight forward recipe to follow and i used vegetable oil instead of canola oil. (Did not find canola oil in the shop) and i also added red chilli . It was a hit in my household. My daughter who is a very fussy eater loved it. I am doing it today again and we are all looking forward to it tonight. I passed on the recipe to my neighbour.
her family thoroughly enjoyed it.
Excellent. easy recipe to follow, most of the ingredients can be found or some substituted. Adding red chilli was great , it just enhanced the texture for those who like spicy food.
Just made this for dinner tonight and it was super on point!! I added a whole onion (with the garlic) and it added even more flavor. The sauce was excellent. Definitely will make again! Thank you for sharing! Simple and delicious!
Sounds much better than my local Chinese restaurant. I’m pretty sure that they use sliced cube steak. I do agree with others that you are off by a factor of two on the sugar. 25 grams per serving is way too much.
Your recipe for Mongolian beef is good except too much sugar in it. I couldn’t finish the dish. Sorry !!!
Do you use the same pan that the meat was cooked in for the rest of the ingredients?
Yes 🙂
Can I use olive oil?
Yes 🙂
do i have to bil beef first in pressure cooker or not??
I haven’t tested this using a pressure cooker so I’m not comfortable giving a recommendation.
I cooked my beef in pressure cooker instead of frying. Just be careful how long u cook it.
This was good but WAY too sweet for me. I would make again though but i’ll try out cutting the sugar down in half.
delicious, I made it for my family in less than 30 minutes and everyone loved it and want me to make it again.
Could we also fry the steak pieces in a deep fryer instead of searing?
Sure
Really good and easy to make. It’s a bit sweet, so next time I’ll use less sugar.
Wow Sabrina! Every dish I’ve made from your website has been money money! I’m so glad I found your site. Awesomeness #5STARLEGEND
Thanks!
Easy recipe and taste good. Only change i would make is less sugar for me its too sweet. O didn’t have cornstarch at hand but used wheat flour and it came out good.
I had some beef chuncks but didn’t know what to do with it then I found this one.
Thats a 10! Amazing flavors.
The only thing I’ll add is veggies, green beans or broccoli
Thank you Sabrina!!
I live in Australia and we only have one type of brown sugar! There is no light or dark. Also the only low sodium soy sauce i can find is kikkoman which i think has a different flavour than the chinese varieties. Do you think the kikkoman will be okay?
You should be fine. Enjoy!
Hey Lara!
Another Aussie here. According to the Woolworths app, they sell a 1kg bag of CSR Dark Brown Sugar if you are interested in getting it.
Jess 🙂
I live in regional Australia and our local Woolworths sells plain brown sugar as well as dark brown sugar.
You should be able to get brown sugar, light brown sugar and dark brown sugar at woollies or coles. Woollies also have a good oriental soy sauce in the Asian section. Or find a chinese shop, they will have pretty much all you need. I’m in Canberra. ?
Does this reheat well? Planning on making double the recipe so there is enough to take for lunch . Plan to make this on Saturday and package it up for Monday lunch.
Yes
I’m not a very skilled cook, and I definitely made some mistakes, yet it still turned out great
the only beef I have with it is that the cooking time for the meat wasn’t enough for my taste
everything else, GREAT
Absolutely so delicious! It’s all gone !! I need to make this again soon !!
It was delicious!!
Wow! This was so simple but amazing!
definitely adding this to my bi-weekly rota!
TERRIBLE. There usually isn’t any breading of any sort in mongolion beef, and because of the cornstartch, it just ends up soaking up all the sauce. Looks nothing like the photo either. Followed recipe to a “T” and ended up with mush. It was like eating soggy cereal with meat and sugary soy sauce mixed in. Also, mongolion beef is supposed to be HOT, like with hot pepper flakes or whole chilis added. The little bit of ginger is not appropriate for this dish. Idk what to call this dish, but it is NOT mongolion beef.
As written, this was far too sweet, even for my sugar-loving husband. We will try it again with half the sugar or less.
Made this today and loved it!! Next time I will use 1/3 cup of sugar instead of 1/2 cup and see if that cuts the sweetness – but I loved it!
Made this today and so deliciously. I will made again.I add snow pea and give crunchy. Thanks for the recipe!!
I will cut the sugar a little but of course we scarfed it up !
can i substitute the cornstarch for flour? i don’t have any at the moment.
Yes
Very easy to make. My only complaint is that it’s way too sweet. Next time I’ll use much less brown sugar. I also would, for my taste, add more garlic and green onion including the tops of the onion.
I’ve tried a few Mongolian beef recipes and this is by far the best I’ve had . We will definitely have this again. LOL
Thanks, David.
This recipe would be great with 1/10th the sugar. We love the other flavors (garlic, ginger, scallion and soy) and appreciate sugar in moderation. But we followed the recipe and the 1/2 cup of sugar it calls for should be crime. It kills all flavor. Definitely make it but use 1 tablespoon of sugar and the rest to taste.
Excellent recipe! I added a medium onion and next time will use less sugar, though.
It’s so easy and very little effort to make but most of all, its really good!
How would I cook this if I don’t have a wok ?
You can use a skillet instead.
I made this with a very good cut of beef my husband said it was criminally delicious.
I don’t typically comment on recipes but this one is amazing. I make it 100% according to the directions and it’s a crowd pleaser every time. Thank you for sharing this!
Yay!! Glad you loved it so much to come back let me know, Katie.
Stumbled across this recipe tonight not knowing what to make for dinner. Followed the recipe exactly except I did not have flank steak so I used sirloin tip meat. AHHHMAAAZING! The family could not get enough, and it was so easy!
I never ever leave feedback but I just had to for this gem. A keeper! Thank you!
I love that you enjoyed enough to want to leave a comment!! You just made my day, Michele.
This is fabulous. I’d been craving this for a while and can’t order it where I am so I made it. Truly terrific – will make again and again!
Is there a way to make this for a slow cooker?
I have a recipe for Mongolian chicken but not beef yet. I’ll add it to my list.
Came out even better than expected! Thank you.
This was outstanding! And easy to make. No changes needed. Thank you for sharing.
Can I add white sugar instead of brown sugar?
Brown sugar has the addition of molasses which adds depth of flavor (think a caramel type flavor). If you don’t use this you’ll lose that flavor and it’ll just be straight sweet. If you don’t have it and you’re in a pinch add a bit of molasses or hoisin sauce. If you don’t have that either add a bit of bbq sauce.
So yummy! The country I live in only has light brown sugar, so I added a little maple syrup to substitute the depth from the molasses and it turned out really well! Your recipes are amazing, whenever I tell my husband that what I’m making is from your blog he’s practically giddy waiting for supper!
That’s so sweet of you to say, Kristen.
Oh , my my ….
I made this just last night and loved it !
Phillip
p.s. yes I too like Kikkoman .
You had me at a mountain of steamed rice!! I pretty much followed the recipe to the letter except for expanding it for several more people and adding cubed onion to the mix, and topping it with a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds. Brilliant!! Everyone has loved it!! Even the baby ( six years old) didn’t have to be coaxed to eat. Thank you for such a wonderful and simple recipe. We will be making this one again!
Yay!! Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know how much you all enjoyed it.
Can I use slices from a sirloin tip roast? I would use a meat mallet to tenderize the slices. I have used your recipe before with a sirloin steak and it was superb.
I’m afraid it might be too tough to use. Tenderizing would help. If you decide to try, I’d love to know how it turned out for you.
Can you use London broil or New York strip in place of flank?
I’d use London Broil over NY strip.
Can I use beef round cubes instead of flank steak, and should I prepare them any differently?
I’d use skirt steak or hanger steak instead.