Panda Express Beijing Beef with bell peppers and onions, tossed in the wok with a tangy sweet and spicy sauce is a tasty spot-on copycat!
Copycat Recipes are an excellent way to enjoy popular restaurant meals at home and on a budget. For the full takeout experience, try some of my other tried and true Panda Express Recipes, like Honey Walnut Shrimp, Kung Pao Chicken, and Chow Mein.
Sabrina’s Panda Express Beijing Beef Recipe
Panda Express Beijing Beef is the beef answer to the insanely popular Panda Express Orange Chicken everyone craves so much. My favorite part of this recipe is the added hint of spice that always was lacking for me in the sweeter orange chicken sauce.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 1 pound flank steak
- 3 large egg whites , beaten
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/4 cup cornstarch , divided
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 yellow onion , sliced
- 1 red bell pepper , cut into 1-inch pieces
- 4 cloves garlic , minced
Sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 6 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons oyster sauce
- 4 teaspoons sweet chili sauce
- 1 teaspoon crushed red peppers
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Cut the flank steak against the grain into thin 1/4-inch slices.
- In a medium sized bowl add the beef, egg, salt, and 1 teaspoon cornstarch and let marinate for 30 minutes to an hour.
- To make the Beijing Beef Sauce, in a small bowl whisk together ½ cup water, ¼ cup sugar, ketchup, hoisin, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sweet chili sauce, crushed red peppers, and apple cider vinegar.
- After the beef has finished marinating add 2 tablespoons cornstarch to a bowl and add the marinated beef (discard the extra marinade).
- Heat a small saucepan with the oil on medium-high (I use a small saucepan so that I can get a deep fry on this without using a lot of oil. So I fry in small batches, if you don’t mind using more oil, go for a bigger pot and you can fry these up much faster).
- With the last two tablespoons of cornstarch toss the beef one last time and shake off any excess cornstarch.
- Fry the slices, in batches, until golden brown (2-3 minutes).
- Heat a large pan on high heat and use two tablespoons of the oil you just fried the beef in.
- Add the onion and bell pepper and cook for 2-3 minutes, until it just starts caramelizing on the edges.
- Add the garlic and continue to cook a few more seconds until fragrant.
- Remove the veggies and put them with the beef on a plate.
- Add the Beijing Beef sauce to the large pan and cook on high until it thickens, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add the beef and vegetables into the sauce and toss to combine.
- Serve immediately.
Nutrition
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Table of Contents
About this Recipe
This sweet and spicy beef dish is a tried and true hit! The breading keeps a crunch to the outside even though it is covered in the addicting, sticky sauce. Meanwhile, the red bell peppers and onions provide a flavorful fresh balance. And despite the long ingredient list and a little extra time for marinating, it all comes together pretty easily!
Ingredients
- Soy Sauce: I always recommend reduced sodium soy sauce to cut the saltiness and sodium.
- Oyster Sauce: This is a uniquely flavored ingredient. If you avoid seafood and want another option I recommend Vegetarian Oyster Sauce (made from mushrooms) but I don’t recommend you swap this out for something else altogether.
- Hoisin Sauce: Considered to be like an Asian BBQ sauce, this sauce makes the dish taste authentic. However, you could substitute a mix of oyster sauce and regular BBQ sauce to cut down on special sauces to buy.
- Sweet Chili Sauce: Adds a sweet glaze to the dish that you’ll have trouble replicating without quite a lot of work and extra ingredients. Note, this is specifically called “sweet chili sauce”, it is not the same as sweet and sour sauce or garlic chili paste.
Kitchen Tools & Equipment
- Wok: A high-quality wok is a great addition to your kitchen if you love cooking Chinese food or stir fries in general. It’s a reliable tool for high-heat, quick cooking.
- Large Frying Pan: You could also use a large cast iron skillet or stainless steel skillet would both work well for this recipe.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
This dish may seem like it has a LONG list of ingredients, but that is because it is a multi-step recipe. If this is more in-depth or time intensive than you would like you can make some quick adjustments to help get dinner on the table sooner.
- Buy pre-sliced (but not seasoned) fajita beef meat from your butcher. It will NOT be as thin as I recommend but it is a quick swap if you’re in a rush.
- Mix up your Panda Express Beijing Beef sauce a day or two before and keep it in the fridge. Most of the prep time is in combining these ingredients.
- Skip the egg batter altogether and just toss the beef in cornstarch. Your beef will not have as much crust, but it will still be plenty crispy and delicious.
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The following photos were used in previous versions of this post:
Too sweet and not spicy enough. A heat scale being added would be beneficial.
My mom tried this and it is so delicious! my dad like it too! she will surely cook this again for us!
Glad your family enjoyed the recipe Gwen!