Make your own take-out with this recipe for orange beef stir fry. The sauce only has 4 ingredients!
Stir fry is pretty much the ultimate quick meal – it cooks up in minutes and is typically fairly healthy too. This orange beef stir fry is no exception – it takes like something you’d get at your favorite chinese restaurant, but you can make it yourself in the time it would take you to load up the family to go out to dinner.
This recipe starts with thinly sliced beef. I used sirloin steaks but new york strip, ribeye or flank steak would work too. The trick to thinly slicing steak is to do it while the meat is partially frozen. If you’re starting with frozen meat, wait until it’s partially defrosted to start slicing, or if you have fresh meat pop it in the freezer for 30-45 minutes so that it can firm up.
The beef gets quickly seared in the pan and then it’s time for the sweet and savory sauce. Would you believe that this sauce only has 4 ingredients?! It’s true, this orange beef stir fry is all about the simplicity.
After the sauce and meat are done, fresh oranges and green onions are stirred into the mix. Add a sprinkle of sesame seeds and you’re done! Don’t forget to put up a pot of rice before you start cooking the meat, that way the rice will be done at the same time as the stir fry. It really does not get any easier than this orange beef stir fry, so the next time you’re thinking about ordering take-out put down the phone and get into the kitchen!
Still hungry? Follow Dinner at the Zoo on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest for more great recipe ideas!
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my full disclosure policy for details.
Orange Beef Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 2 oranges , whole
- 2 oranges , peeled and cut into segments
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 1/2 pounds trimmed boneless sirloin , ribeye or flank steak, cut into 1/2-inch-thick strips
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoons canola oil
- 3 green onions , sliced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- Steamed rice for serving
Instructions
- Into a small bowl, grate the zest from 1 orange and squeeze the juice from 2 oranges. Add the garlic and soy sauce to the bowl. Mix the cornstarch with one tablespoon of cold water and add the cornstarch mixture to the bowl.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Working in batches (adding more oil if needed), brown beef on all sides, 3 to 5 minutes; season the meat with salt and pepper and transfer to a plate.
- Pour juice mixture into skillet, and boil until syrupy, about 1 minute. Return beef to skillet; add orange segments and green onions. Toss until coated and heated through. Top with sesame seeds and serve with steamed rice if desired.
Things You’ll Need (or Want!)
This looks delicious! I need to try this!
My boys would be all over this! We’ve been cooking a lot of chinese food at home lately, so much cheaper and tastier than take out!
We love Chinese around here and this looks right up our alley!
I love love love orange with meats! I’m curious though, not a fan of canola oil, is it okay to use something else?
You can use any neutral flavored oil!
I used extra Virgin olive oil and it came out fine
Glad to hear you liked it, thanks for reporting back!
Another hit at dinner at the zoo, love the oranges!
This dish looks amazing!
This looks absolutely amazing…I am definitely making this! I love that it is so quick to put together too…my kids are going to love this!
What a great combination the orange and beef together. I bet this is such a flavorful dinner!
Wow, your cooked this beef stir fry to perfection! And I’ve actually never thought about mixing orange and beef before, but now I’m seriously wondering why. It sounds delish!
Beautiful photos. I’m impressed that you managed to make beef stir fry look pretty, something I have not yet accomplished!
Thanks Maris, you are absolutely right about stir fries being tricky! I was pretty happy with the end result 🙂
Simple recipes are my favorite, so stir fry always makes me happy! Love the bright orange against the beef pieces.
I am all about Asian Food and this Orange Beef Stir Fry sounds killer!
There are so many wonderful ingredients in this recipe. You did a great job of blending different spices. And the pics look absolutely amazing.
Who’s dish is right up my family’s alley! The hub loves orange beef so yup, it’s happening!
The oranges pop so much against the beef, it makes my photographer heart so happy!!
This is my husbands favorite meal so I am going to have to add this to our dinner menu ASAP!
This is my husbands favorite meal so I am going to have to add this to our dinner menu ASAP!
Yum! This looks so delicious! 😀
Made this tonight, and everyone loved it! SCORE for Mom! Thanks for sharing!