Chinese Beef And Broccoli Soup
Chinese beef and broccoli soup is a fun new spin on the classic Asian-American dish. It’s the take out, fake out dish you’ve never had and didn’t know was missing in your life!
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Hands down, my favorite Chinese take out dish of all time?
Beef and broccoli.
It’s my go-to order and it’s always delicious despite it being a lighter take out option.
What is beef and broccoli?
The classic take out dish features tender strips of juicy, seared beef combined with perfectly cooked broccoli stirred into a rich, savory brown sauce.
Basically it’s heaven in a take out container.
My friends, I’m here to tell you that with a new brothy twist, I’ve discovered that beef and broccoli soup is even better.
Ingredients
To make this you’ll need:
- Beef– I like using flank steak that has been thinly sliced against the grain. You can substitute another kind of steak if you want. Just slice it into thin strips.
- Corn starch– To thicken things up.
- Soy sauce– To give the soup that classic flavor
- Onion– Sliced white onion
- Garlic– Minced
- Spices– Black pepper, ground ginger, and salt
- Olive oil
- Beef broth– Use low sodium if you want to be able to better control the salt content.
- Broccoli– Fresh broccoli florets not frozen
- Oyster sauce– You can find this in the Asian foods aisle in the grocery store or buy it HERE.
- Chili paste– Adjust the amount to suit your tastes.
How to Make
Turning the classic takeout into delicious soup is pretty easy!
Just put the steak strips into a large mixing bowl.
Season them with black pepper, and toss them with corn starch and soy sauce.
Cover the mixture and let it marinate for 10-15 minutes.
After the beef marinates, heat half of the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat.
Once the oil’s hot and shimmery, spread out half of the prepared steak in a single layer.
Sear the meat for 45 seconds to a minute without stirring to get the nice golden crust.
Flip all of the meat and cook for another 30 seconds, until it’s barely cooked but very tender.
Transfer the meat to a clean plate, including any juices, and cover with foil.
Repeat this with the second half of the uncooked steak.
Keeping the pot over medium high heat, stir in the onion and garlic followed by a half cup of beef broth.
Season the aromatics with the ginger and salt, to taste.
Use the broth and a sturdy spoon to deglaze the pan, scraping up all the flavorful browned bits stuck to the bottom.
Stir in the rest of the beef broth and the broccoli florets, turning the heat up to high to bring the soup to a boil.
When the soup boils, stir in the oyster sauce and chili paste.
Let the soup cook for 2 minutes or until the broccoli’s just softened, but still crisp.
Remove the pot from heat, stirring in the cooked meat and any juices.
Serve and enjoy!
Storing Leftovers
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheat in the microwave or on the stove top until warmed through.
Tips and Tricks
- This soup is delicious as is, but you can make it even heartier stirring in cooked white rice to your bowl. Don’t add it to the pot, as it won’t keep well for any possible leftovers. Instead, we add 1/3 cup to each bowl when served.
- The soup’s best made with steak as suggested, but ground beef does work too. If you want to use ground beef, use a leaner version. Then add it to the pot with the oil, season with the cornstarch and pepper, stirring to incorporate. Once it’s mostly cooked through, stir in the soy sauce, and leave the beef in the pot once done and continue with the rest of the recipe as instructed.
- Wondering if you can sub stock for broth? You can, but this recipe naturally infuses itself with flavor and salt so stick with broth if it’s an option.
- If you’ve never cooked with chili paste before, start with a tablespoon of it. Then give the soup a taste and add more to your liking.
Other Asian Recipes with a Twist
Chinese beef and broccoli soup is a delicious spin on the classic take out dish.
Make it and enjoy!
Looking for other Asian recipes with a twist?
Try these:
- Cheeseburger Fried Rice
- Mongolian Barbecue Burgers With Asian Slaw
- Asian Chicken Noodle Soup
- Kung Pao Shrimp Po’ Boys
If you’ve tried this CHINESE BEEF AND BROCCOLI SOUP, or any other recipe on the site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on.
Chinese Beef And Broccoli Soup
Ingredients
- 1 1/2-2 lbs flank steak, thinly sliced, against the grain, into strips
- 2 tbsp corn starch
- freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 1/2 cup thinly sliced strips of white onion
- 6 tsp minced garlic
- heaping 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 3 tbsp olive oil, divided
- salt
- 8 cups beef broth
- 4-5 cups fresh broccoli florets
- 1/4 cup oyster sauce
- 1-2 tbsp chili paste
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, add the steak strips seasoning liberally with freshly cracked back pepper. Add in the corn starch and soy sauce, tossing to combine. Cover the mixture and let it marinate for 10-15 minutes.1 1/2-2 lbs flank steak, thinly sliced, against the grain, into strips, 2 tbsp corn starch, freshly cracked black pepper, to taste, 1/4 cup soy sauce
- Heat a dutch oven, or other sturdy soup pot, over medium high heat. Add half of the olive oil. Once the oil's hot, which won't take long, add half of the prepared steak, spreading it out in a single layer. Sear the meat for 45 seconds to a minute without stirring.3 tbsp olive oil, divided
- Flip all of the meat and cook for another 30 seconds, until it's barely cooked but very tender. Transfer the meat to a clean plate, including any juices, and cover with foil. Repeat these steps with the second half of the uncooked steak.
- Keeping the pot over medium high heat, add in the onion and garlic. Stir in a half cup of beef broth, and season with the ginger and salt, to taste. Use the broth and a sturdy spoon to deglaze the pan, scraping up all the flavorful browned bits stuck to the bottom.1 1/2 cup thinly sliced strips of white onion, 6 tsp minced garlic, heaping 1/4 tsp ground ginger, salt, 8 cups beef broth
- Stir in the rest of the beef broth and the broccoli florets, turning the heat up to high to bring the soup to a boil.4-5 cups fresh broccoli florets
- Once the soup's boiling, stir in the oyster sauce and chili paste. I'd taste test before adding the second tablespoon, especially if you aren't familiar with cooking with it because it is spicy.1/4 cup oyster sauce, 1-2 tbsp chili paste
- Let it cook for 2 minutes- until the broccoli's just softened, but still crisp. Adjust salt & pepper, if needed.
- Remove the pot from heat, stirring in the cooked meat and any juices. Serve & enjoy!
Notes
- This soup is delicious as is, but you can make it even heartier stirring in cooked white rice to your bowl. Don't add it to the pot, as it won’t keep well for any possible leftovers. Instead, we add 1/3 cup to each bowl when served.
- The soup’s best made with steak as suggested, but ground beef does work too. If you want to use ground beef, use a leaner version. Then add it to the pot with the oil, season with the cornstarch and pepper, stirring to incorporate. Once it's mostly cooked through, stir in the soy sauce, and leave the beef in the pot once done and continue with the rest of the recipe as instructed.
- Wondering if you can sub stock for broth? You can, but this recipe naturally infuses itself with flavor and salt so stick with broth if it’s an option.
- If you've never cooked with chili paste before, start with a tablespoon of it. Then give the soup a taste and add more to your liking.
Nutrition
recipe adapted from The Food Charlatan
This post may contain affiliate links. As an amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See my full Disclosure Policy for details. As always, all opinions are my own.
Fabulous!!!
I love this idea! Beef and broccoli is one of my favorites as well and now I can’t wait to try it as a soup!
Step 5 says to stir in the broccoli. Step 7 also says to stir in the broccoli. Which step is correct?
Step 5, and I’ve updated the recipe card to reflect that. Sorry about that Paul!
I used this more as an inspirational starting point due to some dietary restrictions. So thank you for the inspiration. I make my own beef broth, so I just used the shredded meat that I took off the bones, which was 1.5lbs of usable meat. I omitted the corn starch. Omitted the oyster sauce. Used Tamari instead of soy sauce. Added a bit of molasses. Used fresh grated ginger (1 Tablespoon). Used the tallow that was on top of the broth I made instead of olive oil. Used to love chili paste, but can’t seem to find one that fits dietary issues. So omitted that. Added a couple of diced carrots. Added some locally foraged dried mushrooms. Used a 1lb bag of frozen organic broccoli from Costco. Added spiralized zucchini. Added some baby bok choy I happened to have. I had to adjust some of the cooking instructions based on the alterations I made. After tasting added a teaspoon of coconut sugar and a few splashes of rice vinegar. I think this would also be good with baby spinach added in.