This pepper steak stir fry is thinly sliced flank steak cooked with red and green bell peppers in a savory sauce. A quick and easy meal that tastes even better than take out!
I always order pepper steak at my local Chinese restaurant, it’s one of my favorite dishes. This homemade version is ready in minutes and has that same great restaurant flavor.
There’s nothing better than a delicious Asian dish that’s not only easy to make, but also better than takeout. This pepper steak stir fry is a restaurant quality meal made in the comfort of your own home!
HOW DO YOU MAKE PEPPER STEAK STIR FRY?
This dish is a combination of sauteed bell peppers, browned steak and a savory sauce. The recipe starts by cooking the sliced peppers until tender. The next step is to add the thinly sliced flank steak into the pan. The finishing touch is the 2 minute sauce which gets poured over the meat and vegetables and then simmered until thickened. Add a bowl of steamed rice and dinner is ready!
I used red and green bell peppers in my Chinese pepper steak because that’s what I had on hand. However, any color of bell pepper is perfectly fine. Some bell peppers are sweeter than others. Red, yellow and orange peppers are typically sweeter than green peppers. Some pepper steak recipes call for tomatoes or onions, feel free to add those into the mix if you like.
To make your steak easier to slice, you can place it in the freezer for 20-30 minutes. Partially freezing the meat firms it up and makes it easier to get super thin slices. I typically use flank steak for this recipe as it’s readily available and super flavorful. However, sirloin goes great in place of the flank steak, if it’s preferred or if you have easier access to it.
WHAT KIND OF MEAT IS PEPPER STEAK?
Pepper steak isn’t an actual type of meat. The title can make it appear to be a specific type of steak but it’s just the name of the dish because it contains peppers and steak. The steak often used in pepper steak dishes is flank, sirloin, or round steak.
CAN THE STEAK BE COOKED IN THE OVEN?
If you would like to cook the steak in the oven, that’s perfectly fine to do, although you won’t get that seared brown crust. Simply make sure you don’t leave the meat in the oven for too long so that it dries out and becomes tough. You can place your steak in an oven proof pan and bake it for up to 15 minutes, depending on how well-done you like your steak. Be sure to stir it halfway through the cook time.
My family and I absolutely love a good stir fry. It’s so much nicer to make this steak stir fry at home rather than having to get everyone together to go out and eat. We like serving it over rice or sometimes eating it by itself. Either way, it’s delicious.
OTHER BEEF RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
- Steak Bites with Garlic Butter
- Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak
- Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers
- Soy Marinated Flank Steak
- Philly Cheesesteak Pasta
Pepper Steak Stir Fry Video
Pepper Steak Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil divided use
- 1 red bell pepper cored, seeded and cut into strips
- 1 green bell pepper cored, seeded and cut into strips
- 1 1/4 pounds flank steak thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
Instructions
- Heat 1 teaspoon of the vegetable oil over medium high heat in a large pan.
- Add the peppers and cook for 3-4 minutes or until just tender. Remove the peppers from the pan and place on a plate.
- Add the remaining oil to the pan. Season the flank steak with salt and pepper to taste.
- Increase heat to high. Add the steak to the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Add the garlic and ginger, then cook for 30 seconds.
- Place the peppers back in the pan with the steak.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sugar, 1/4 cup water and cornstarch.
- Pour the sauce over the steak mixture and bring to a simmer. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until sauce has just thickened, then serve.
The Pepper steak recipes and Bourbon chicken recipes are two our my family’s favorites!
My husband and I both loved it! I used low-sodium soy sauce and it was great; definitely a keeper recipe.
So good! My family loves this! In addition to this wonderful recipe I also add some chopped up water chestnuts and add a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top after plating!
Super yummy. I added onions, doubled the sauce and had to add some water because it thickened up super fast.
The BEST recipe!!! Tried it and it turned out awesome!!!
Came out well. I’m a good cook but never made pepper steak until he wanted it. Enjoyed by both
This is a great work night dinner! Cooks in minutes. I like to start the rice, then make sure very thing is chopped and ready to add to the pan, as this cooks so quickly. I hade found that I usually need to add some water to the sauce as it can get pretty thick. Very tasty!
This was delicious I made it exactly the same way .. I definitely will be making this again
So delicious and savory! I added onion as well. If your a saucy person like me I advise doubling up on the sauce ingredients
I made this tonight, but added onion and used ground ginger instead of fresh. I feel that the cooking time of the steak mentioned would make flank too tough. I cooked it 1-2 minutes per side, and it worked well. I would double the sauce next time. I only added some black pepper at the end. I didn’t add any additional salt since soy sauce has enough.
I made this last week and it was fabulous! Making it again tonight but using chicken … I also double the sauce and serve over rice.
I made the Pepper Steak and followed the recipe. It is an easy and quick week night dinner. However, next time I will eliminate the salt, or reduce soy sauce to 1 1/2 tablespoons, Thank you for the recipe.
I made this as stated, but added sliced onion, and sliced mushrooms that I needed to use up. I also substituted ground ginger, because that is what I had on hand. I doubled the sauce as we were having it over rice.
It came out delicious.
Will make it again:)
I made this dish with steakThis dish came out soooo good. Yes make the dish. Tonight I’m going to use chicken. I’m sure it will be just as good.
What a joy seeing the look on my wife’s face. This recipe belongs on the home screen of my phone! Thank you!
I made this recipe and it was beautiful! I did add an onion and chilli flakes and I also doubled up on the sauce recipe as we were having it with rice and I didn’t want it to be too dry. It was perfect, I’ll definitely be making it again soon thanks for sharing this recipe!
I’ve made this recipe so many times I’ve lost count. And every time it is Amazing!!! I’ve made this dish for others and have been told it’s better than any restaurant they’ve tried it at. Also several other recipes from Dinner at the Zoo and none have failed or been disappointing.
Very tasty and super simple!
This recipe made me feel like a great cook!! The only thing I did differently was I added a large onion and one extra pepper. Delicious!!
This was the best recipe I have tried for pepper steak. Did add onions along with the peppers. Also added some tomato wedges after adding the sauce. We will definitely be having this often. Thank you for such an easy and great tasting recipe.