Beef stir fry with noodles is a low-calorie, quick, and filling dish. The secret to its deliciousness is that the noodles must first be sautéed with the sauce so that the noodles can fully absorb the sauce. Of course, another delicious secret is that the beef should be marinated first. You can learn how to prepare and tenderize beef in my article, “How to Tenderize Beef for Stir-Fry.”
Beef stir fry noodle recipe
With this beef stir fry recipe with noodles, it’ll take you less than 30 minutes to prepare a low-calorie dinner for your whole family. The low-calorie secret is that I use spaghetti, which has fewer calories than typical Chinese or Japanese noodles and doesn’t get mushy easily.
If you’re busy, you can marinate the beef the day before and cook and freeze the spaghetti. This way, the next day you can first quickly brown the beef. Then you tossed the spaghetti with the sauce together, add the vegetables and the beef and fry them briefly – and your delicious dinner is ready in less than 20 minutes.
Ingredients
- Beef – I use flank steak, but you can also use sirloin or tenderloin. More expensive cuts (such as filet) can also be used.
- Baby Bella Mushrooms – You need to sauté them first, you can also sauté them with carrots, then their aroma will develop.
- Carrots – Slice them and fry them in oil first. This way they become soft and get their sweetness.
- Garlic – this is a must for Chinese food.
- Onion – In this dish, we like the sweetness of the onion. Therefore, you need to cut the onion along the grain to get its sweetness.
- Green bell pepper – cut them into thin pieces.
Beef Stir Fry Sauce
For this dish, you just need oyster sauce, soy sauce, and some black pepper to enhance the flavor.
You don’t need any additional sauces because the beef and vegetables already bring out their flavors.
Beef Marinade
This is almost the same as most stir fry beef marinades, you add soy sauce, baking soda, rice wine, and a beaten egg and massage it with your hands so the beef absorbs the sauces and gets more flavor. Finally, you add cornstarch and oil and marinate it for more than 10 minutes. The cornstarch and oil should be added last.
If you’re marinating more than 30 minutes in advance or marinating before the day, you don’t need to add the baking soda, cornstarch, and oil, just add them 10 minutes before cooking.
PRO TIP: The cornstarch does the job of sealing the marinade. The oil will keep the beef from sticking together when it’s pan-fried.
How to make
- Prepare the beef – To make the flank steak more tender, always cut against the grain direction. You can refer to my other post, "How To Velvet Beef For Stir Fry?" I'll show you how to cut the beef and how to tenderize it.
- Marinade beef – You add soy sauce, baking soda powder, white pepper powder, rice wine, and beaten egg, massage it with your hands so that the beef absorbs the sauces better.Second, add cornstarch and oil at the end and marinate them for more than 10 minutes.
- Mix sauce: Mix soy sauce, oyster, and water in a medium bowl until well blended. Set aside.
- Cook the spaghetti, drain it and set it aside. Since we're using spaghetti, the noodles won't stick together and you won't have to mix them with oil after draining.PRO TIP: If you're using Chinese or Japanese noodles, remember to add 1 tablespoon of oil after draining and mix well so the noodles don't stick together when you fry them in the pan.
- Saute aromatics – heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add the onions and carrots. Stir fry for 1 minute.
- Add the garlic – stir fry for 1 minute.
- Add baby Bella mushrooms – stir fry for 1 minute.
- Add the beef – don't turn it, but wait 1 minute to stir fry it. This will give you a nice brown color. Stir fry for another 1 minute is enough. You don't have to overcook it. The meat is very thinly sliced and can easily overcook.
- Add sauce – pour into pan and bring to a boil.
- Add spaghetti and toss in sauce for about 1 minute.
- Add green bell pepper – and stir briefly for about 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add beef, onions, carrots, and baby Bella mushrooms back in. Toss everything together with the noodles for 1to 2 minutes. Then you're ready to serve.
Recipe substitution and variation:
- Meats: chicken thighs, breasts, and pork strips are great meat substitutions.
- Add veggies: if you’d like more vegetables, you can add the vegetables that don’t produce moisture. For example: snow peas, broccoli and zucchini are a great addition.
- Make it vegetarian: fried tofu, cauliflowers, and mushrooms.
More Asian stir fry noodles
SHIRATAKI NOODLES
RICE VERMICELLI
DAN DAN NOODLES
CHOW MEIN
Vietnamese Noodles with Lemongrass Chicken
Pad See Ew (Thai Stir Fry Noodles)
Ingredients
MARINADE BEEF:
- 0.45 lb flank steak , (200g, sliced 1/4 inch thick)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon white or black pepper
- 1 tablespoon beaten egg
- 1 tablespoon rice wine , Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
THE SAUCE:
- 60 ml water
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1.5 tablespoon soy sauce
STIR FRY:
- 1/2 green bell pepper
- 300 g spaghetti
- 1/2 onion
- 1/2 carrots
- 1 teaspoon garlic , minced
- 5~6 baby Bella mushroom , sliced
Instructions
- Prepare the beef – To make the flank steak more tender, always cut against the grain direction. (Note 1)You can refer to my other post, "How To Velvet Beef For Stir Fry?" I'll show you how to cut the beef and how to tenderize it.
- Marinade beef – You add soy sauce, baking soda powder, white pepper powder, rice wine, and beaten egg, massage it with your hands so that the beef absorbs the sauces better.Second, add cornstarch and oil at the end and marinate them for more than 10 minutes. (Note 2 & 3)
- Mix sauce: Mix soy sauce, oyster, and water in a medium bowl until well blended. Set aside.
- Cook the spaghetti, drain it and set it aside. Since we're using spaghetti, the noodles won't stick together and you won't have to mix them with oil after draining. (Note 4)
- Saute aromatics – heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add the onions and carrots. Stir fry for 1 minute.
- Add the garlic – stir fry for 1 minute.
- Add baby Bella mushrooms – stir fry for 1 minute.
- Add the beef – don't turn it, but wait 1 minute to stir fry it. This will give you a nice brown color. Stir fry for another 1 minute is all you need. Take it to a plate and set it aside.You don't have to overcook it. The meat is very thinly sliced and can easily overcook.
- Bring sauce to a boil in the same pan, add spaghetti and toss for about 1 minute.
- Add green bell pepper – and stir briefly for about 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add beef, onions, carrots, and baby Bella mushrooms back in. Toss everything together with the noodles for 1 to 2 minutes. Then you're ready to serve.
- Serve hot as a main dish or side dish.
Video
Tips & Notes:
- Cut the beef against the direction of the grain so that the tissue can be separated and the bite is easier to make.
- The cornstarch and oil should be added last. The cornstarch does the job of sealing the marinade. The oil will keep the beef from sticking together when it’s pan-fried.
- If you’re marinating more than 30 minutes in advance or marinating before the day, you don’t need to add the baking soda, cornstarch, and oil, just add them 10 minutes before cooking.
- If you’re using Chinese or Japanese noodles, remember to add 1 tablespoon of oil after draining and mix well so the noodles don’t stick together when you fry them in the pan.
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