Thai Beef And Broccoli - an easy flavorful weeknight meal! With coconut milk, red curry paste, shallots, brown sugar, fish sauce, broccoli and beef - it's a delicious twist on a classic and even better than take out! Plus it's gluten-free and ready in under 30 minutes!
I guess I’m on a Thai kick these days. A few weeks ago I posted a Pad Thai Fry Dog on the blog – in a word - AHH-MAZING! Yup – I went there.✌️
I’m going there again by putting a Thai twist on a Chinese classic. We’ve got the usual players: beef and broccoli, of course. Then the addition of red curry paste and coconut milk – Mmm makes me happy just thinking about it.😊
There’s so much about coconut milk that I love. It’s rich, thick, creamy and the most beautiful pure white color. Not to mention it tastes like a sunny beach vacation.⛱ Seriously, what’s not to love about that?
I really like making Asian cuisine at home. It’s easy, there’s no MSG, I can control the sodium content, and I actually think it tastes better. I haven't mastered the art of making my own fortune cookies yet, so that is one small drawback.
But I’ll take that tradeoff all day err day.👍
This recipe comes from my friends over at Williams-Sonoma. I made a few tweaks, but the concept is all theirs.
They call for steaming the broccoli in the microwave, but I steam mine on the stove top while I’m prepping the rest of my ingredients. It doesn’t make the recipe take any longer, plus it could possibly be healthier. I’m not sure I’ve ever shared this with you before… the B man has a fierce aversion to using microwaves. Random right? Literally he won’t even microwave water.😳
I’m not sure where he got this inhibition but he is very fixed on his position. Something about “microwaves are banned in Europe because they’re so harmful so why are we still using them?”🤔
He’s so resolute on the issue he even tried to prevent us from installing one when we remodeled our kitchen. Luckily my argument for needing one for resale purposes won out. Who cares if it’s hidden at the bottom of the kitchen island – at least we have one!! You gotta celebrate the wins people.🙌
I was curious about this microwave phobia so I did a little investigating (what did we do before the Internet???).
It turns out there are several articles about microwaves being banned in Russia and other European countries but there were just as many articles stating these allegations were false. So my findings on this microwave issue were inconclusive.😐
But apparently for me and my house we will not be microwaving… we’ll that’s what I’ll keep telling ole’ Sanderinio anyways. Shhh.😝
Back to this super-delicious and non-microwaved Thai Beef And Broccoli Recipe….👇
While I was steaming my broccoli on the stove, I sliced my shallots, and prepped my beef. The recipe calls for the use of beef filet. Although this is a pricier cut of meat, I found it to be extremely tender and perfect for this recipe. It has virtually no fat content, so it’s healthier than most beef options. Plus, you only need 1 pound for the whole recipe… so even though it’s a bit more costly, a little goes a long way. And you’re so worth it!!👊
You slice the filet really thinly against the grain to create delicate strips. I took it one step further… I layered them out on a cutting board, covered them with plastic wrap and gently flattened them. This ensures a wonderfully tender experience in every bite.
Next it was time to start cooking. You sauté your beef in a little oil in a large sauce pan for about 45 seconds a side. Then transfer to a plate while you continue to cook the rest of the beef in batches. As you can imagine this goes pretty quick.
You add in your shallots and sauté for 2-3 minutes, and your ginger for another minute.
Then stir in your red curry paste and continue to cook for about one more minute. Add in your fish sauce, brown sugar and coconut milk, let it simmer until it thickens up - about 5 minutes.
Add your beef and broccoli back into the pan and dinner is served!✨
I like to serve this beef and broccoli recipe over jasmine rice and garnish with lime wedges and fresh basil.🌿 So delicious and even better than panda express broccoli beef take out!😮 And that’s saying something!!
This Easy Beef And Broccoli recipe is a delicious weeknight meal – sans microwave! Enjoy my friend!
I would love to connect with you! Leave a comment and follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, & Pinterest!
Thai Beef With Broccoli
Thai Beef with Broccoli - an easy flavorful weeknight meal! Gluten Free, Ready in under 30 minutes. With coconut milk, red curry paste, shallots, brown sugar, fish sauce, broccoli and beef.
Ingredients
- 12 ounces broccoli florets (1 ½ inch florets), one medium-sized head of broccoli
- 2 large shallots, thinly sliced
- 1 pound beef tenderloin trimmed of any fat, (about 2 small filet steaks)
- ½ teaspoon salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon safflower oil, or olive oil
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh ginger, (or substitute with ¾ teaspoon ground ginger)
- 1 ½ tablespoons Thai red curry paste
- 1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoon firmly packed brown sugar
- 14 ounces lite coconut milk, stirred thoroughly (one 13.5-oz/430ml can)
- 8 fresh basil leaves, chopped or torn
- 4 lime wedges, for serving
- steamed Jasmine rice, for serving
Instructions
- Steam broccoli on stove-top for approx 4-5 minutes. You want it al dente - transfer to a plate and set aside to cool. Avoid overcooking!
- While steaming broccoli, slice the shallots, and prepare the beef.
- Slice the filet against the grain, very thinly, to create delicate strips about ¼ inch thick. Lay them flat on a cutting board, cover with plastic wrap, and gently flatten them with a meat tenderizer. (Be very careful when flattening the meat; I literally only pound each section of each piece one time. This ensures a wonderfully tender experience in every bite.) Season the beef slices with salt and pepper.
- Sauté the beef in oil in a large sauce pan for about 45 seconds per side. Then transfer to a plate while you continue to cook the rest of the beef in batches. Next add in shallots, sauté for 2-3 minutes, then add ginger for another minute.
- Stir in red curry paste and continue to cook for about one more minute. Add in fish sauce, brown sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper, and coconut milk, and let it simmer until it thickens up - about 4-5 minutes.
- Add your beef and broccoli back into the pan to heat up and serve! Garnish with fresh basil and lime wedges if desired.
Notes
- If sauce thickens too much add a tablespoon or two of water to thin it out.
- You can also saute, boil or bake your broccoli if you prefer. Just be sure to not over cook it.
Nutrition Information
Yield
5Serving Size
10 ouncesAmount Per Serving Calories 393Total Fat 28gSaturated Fat 13gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 63mgSodium 651mgCarbohydrates 13gFiber 2gSugar 5gProtein 18g
Michelle Simon
Harvested the broccoli we grew in the garden and needed a great recipe. Well, we found it? We make a lot of Thai curry around here, but I gotta say . . . the layers of flavor that the shallot and ginger add are so so good! Great new take on an old classic, Holly!!!
Bryan
So glad you liked this rendition!! Thanks for the comment!!. 🙂 🙂 B.
Mike Darrish
When do the basil leaves get used?
Bryan
Hi Mike they're used for garnish at the end. We've updated the recipe card to clarify that, thanks for pointing it out. Enjoy! 🙂 - B&H
Jacqueline
Speaking as a Dutch girl living in Belgium: Microwaves are certainly not banned in Europe 🙂
holly
Haha thanks for the intel, Jacqueline! Since we posted this we've moved and I'm happy to report I still have a microwave. The hubs doesn't use it but I'm all about using it when it makes sense. Thanks for stopping by.
Sandhya Ramakrishnan
Absolutely love the recipe! I would use tofu instead of the meat and make it work for us (vegetarians).
Platter Talk
Hmmmm. Such beautiful colors and flavors! I will try this!
Sarah @ Champagne Tastes
Asian fusion at it's best! love it!
Stephanie@ApplesforCJ
Love the addition of coconut milk..I prefer to make Chinese inspired dishes at home as well. The microwave thing is not as unusual as you might think. I broke up with my microwave a while back as well even though I still own one.
Julie | Bunsen Burner Bakery
Stir fry is such a great fast weeknight dinner!
AZ@...And a Dash of Cinnamon
Oh yum! I love beef and broccoli! It's been so long since I've had it though. This looks great, I like the thai spin on it!
holly
Thanks so much AZ! I kind of forgot about it as well. Then I found this recipe and haven't stopped making it since!!😝