Black Pepper Beef Recipe

Black pepper beef stir fry with red and green peppers in a black bowl

4.80 from 30 votes

Tender strips of steak, stir fried in a warming black pepper sauce with peppers and onions. A quick but luxurious dinner!

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Total Time30

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Asian

Keyword: spicy, Takeaway food at home

Servings: servings

Author Nicky Corbishley

Ingredients

Black Pepper Steak:

450 g (1 lb) thin steak sliced thinly, against the grain (I use sirloin)
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
¼ tsp salt
4 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tsp sesame oil
2 medium-sized onions peeled and chopped into thick slices
1 green bell pepper deseeded and sliced
1 red bell pepper deseeded and sliced
2 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch)
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine (or replace with dry sherry)
120 ml (1/2 cup) beef stock
2 cloves garlic peeled and minced
1 tsp minced ginger

To Serve:

boiled rice

Instructions

Toss the steak slices with 1 tsp of the black pepper and the salt.
450 g (1 lb) thin steak, 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper, 1/4 tsp salt
Heat 3 tbsp of the sunflower oil and the sesame oil in a wok (or large frying pan) over a high heat until hot, then add the steak.
4 tbsp sunflower oil, 1 tsp sesame oil
Fry the steak for 2-3 minutes, moving it around the wok so it doesn't stick together, until browned.
Spoon out the steak into a bowl, leaving any oil behind in the wok. Turn down the heat to medium.
Add the remaining 1 tbsp of sunflower oil to the wok. Add in the sliced onions and sliced peppers.
2 medium-sized onions, 1 green bell pepper, 1 red bell pepper
Stir fry the vegetables for 3-4 minutes until starting to soften.
Whilst the vegetables are cooking, take a small jug and add the cornflour, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, Chinese rice wine, beef stock and the remaining 1 tsp of black pepper. Stir together to combine then put to one side.
2 tbsp cornflour, 2 tbsp dark soy sauce, 2 tbsp oyster sauce, 1 tbsp Chinese rice wine, 120 ml (1/2 cup) beef stock
Coming back to the wok, add the garlic and minced ginger to the vegetables. Cook for 1 minute, stirring often.
2 cloves garlic, 1 tsp minced ginger
Add in the sauce we mixed in the jug to the wok and stir together. Let it come to a gentle simmer. If it looks too thick you can add in a splash of water.
Add the steak back to the wok and stir through to coat in the sauce. Cook for a further 2 minutes to heat the steak back through.
Serve the black pepper beef over boiled rice.
boiled rice

Video

Notes

Can I make it ahead?

This recipe tastes best when cooked and eaten right away, but you can make it ahead if you prefer.
If you do, I would definitely recommend you use sirloin, as it stands up better to the reheating process, whilst still being tender. The vegetables will be softer upon reheating.

To make ahead, make the black pepper beef stir fry, quickly cool, cover and refrigerate for up to a day.
Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before you want to reheat it to take the chill off it, then reheat over a medium-high heat in a wok. Stir often to prevent it sticking and add in a good splash of water or beef stock to help loosen up the sauce.

Cook for about 5-6 minutes, until piping hot throughout.

Ingredient swaps

Swap out the beef for thin strips of pork or chicken
Add in other quick cook vegetables - such as thin strips of carrot, sugarsnap peas (snow peas), beansprouts (mung bean sprouts) and thinly shredded cabbage.

How to scale up and scale down this recipe

You can double or halve the recipe, sticking to the same ingredient ratios.

If you're doubling the recipe, it's likely you'll have to cook the steak in two batches, otherwise the steak will sweat in the pan (rather than fry and brown) and will become chewy.

Nutritional Information is per serving not including the serving suggestion of boiled rice.

Nutrition

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