Garlic Lovers Pepper Steak

Name: Garlic Lovers Pepper Steak
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Asian-Inspired
Ingredients: 6 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce; ¼ cup low sodium chicken or beef broth; 1 tablespoon oyster sauce; 2 tablespoons sugar; 1 tablespoon sesame oil; 2 tablespoons cornstarch (scant); ⅛-¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes; 1 - 1½ pounds flank, skirt or top sirloin steak cut into pieces on the biased; 1 tablespoon grated ginger (or paste); 6-8 cloves garlic, minced; 3 bell peppers, cut into cubes (any color you like); 1 medium onion, cut into thick slices; oil, for cooking

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Ultra flavorful pepper steak stir fry tastes even better than your favorite take-out! This is a great recipe that you can meal prep for the week or throw together for dinner!

thinly sliced beef and peppers steak in pan

Garlic Lovers unite!

This pepper steak stir fry recipe has been in the works for some time. It’s definitely in the running for the most delicious stir fry recipe I’ve ever shared with you. Not to mention that it’s a million times healthier than the stuff you get from a restaurant! Hands down taste better than your favorite takeout joint.

There are so many reasons why I love this recipe. My pepper steak recipe is healthy, loaded with protein, colorful from peppers, and pretty simple to make at home. Marinate the meat right before making it or on Sunday to get a jump start on Monday night dinner. Then enjoy leftovers because they get even more garlicky as they hang out in the fridge.

How to make pepper steak:

bowl of rice topped with pepper steak stir fry

Ingredients to make the best pepper steak:

Beef: You can use a few different cuts for this. Thinly sliced top sirloin steak, flank steak, top round steak, or skirt steak will all work here. I suggest slicing the meat thin strips, on the biased against the grain to help make it tender and cook up super quick without drying out.
Veggies: a couple of bell peppers, cut into cubes and an onion, cut into thick slices.
Aromatics: grated ginger or paste and a handful of garlic cloves. You can always cut back on the garlic if you aren’t a huge fan. Go with 1-3 cloves if you’re cooking for a date!
Sauces + Stock: You’ll need stock (or broth) soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sesame oil for this recipe. You can find all of these sauces in most mainstream grocery stores. Keep in mind that since we’re using two different sodium-rich sauces and stock for this recipe, I suggest using low sodium soy sauce and low sodium broth here. I found the recipe to be too salty if I used the regular versions here.
Seasonings: Nothing out of the ordinary here! You’ll need sugar, cornstarch, and red pepper flakes to season the pepper steak stir fry.

ingredients to marinate meat with on white marble

How to make this easy pepper steak recipe:

The sauce/marinade. Here’s where it all starts. We’re going to prep the sauce with low sodium soy sauce, chicken or beef broth, oyster sauce, water, brown sugar, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, and cornstarch. Use a little bit of this to marinate the beef, and then add the ginger and garlic to the remaining sauce. Allow the beef to marinate in the mixture for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight. The longer it sits, the more flavor the beef will develop.
Sear the beef. When you’re ready to cook, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ½ of the beef and do a quick sear on both sides. This should only take about a minute or so. Remove the meat to a dish and then repeat with the remaining beef. When the beef is cooked, we’re going to saute the veggies. Add the onions and give them a 1-minute head start before adding the peppers and sauteing. Keep in mind we want to do this at high heat, so the peppers remain crunchy but get that blistered char on the outside. Add the seared meat back to the skillet. Then pour the remaining marinade into the pan and stir to combine. The cornstarch will cause the sauce to thicken nearly instantly, so stir here to coat all the meat and veggies.
Serve immediately. Top the pepper steak with sesame seeds and serve warm!

peppers and steak topped with sesame seeds in pan

FAQs about pepper steak:

Can I use only one color of pepper?

You can! Just make sure to still use the same quantity listed.

How do you suggest serving this?

You can serve this over fluffy rice, cauli-rice, or even wheat noodles!

Can I meal prep this for later? How long will it last?

You can! This will last for about 4 days in the refrigerator. For reheating, just pop it in the microwave until it’s warmed through.

Can you marinate and freeze the meat?

You can! I suggest freezing this as soon and you combine the ingredients with the beef. That way, as the beef defrosts, it will marinate.

If you like this recipe, you might also like:

bowl of rice topped with beef stir fry with pepper sand onions

Recipe originally published Feb 2018, updated with new pictures and post July 2021.

Yield: 4-6 servings