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Trust me on this one. If you want the most tender pepper steak you’ve ever made at home, this recipe is it. It’s fast, saucy, and I give you just enough tips to make it work on a busy night!
Read This Before You Order Takeout
- It actually turns out tender! No chewy steak, no wondering what went wrong. My pepper steak recipe just works.
- It’s fast enough for a weeknight! Simple ingredients and straightforward steps, and it tastes just like take-out, maybe even better!
- The sauce is so good! The kind you want extra rice for because you’re definitely not letting it go to waste.
Pepper Steak Ingredients
- Steak: You don’t have to use flank steak; you could use sirloin, round, or skirt steak.
- Bell Pepper: Use your favorite color of bell peppers or add some of your favorite vegetables.
How to Make Pepper Steak Stir-Fry
This simple pepper steak recipe is sure to become part of your dinner rotation. You get good protein, veggies, and this dish is ready in 30 minutes! I like serving it with rice and some garlic edamame!
- Cook Peppers: In a medium-sized skillet or wok over medium-high heat, add oil. Add red bell pepper and green bell pepper and cook for 1-2 minutes until tender. Remove and set aside on a plate.
- Cook Steak: Turn the heat to high and add sliced flank steak. Brown the beef for about 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-high and continue to cook until no longer pink, about 3 minutes.
- Make Sauce: In a small bowl, whisk minced garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, ground ginger, and cornstarch.
- Combine: Add the cooked peppers back to the skillet, then pour in the sauce mixture. Continue to cook for 1-2 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken. Garnish with green onions, if desired, then serve pepper steak over rice.
Alyssa’s Pro Tip
Slicing the Steak: Always slice the meat against the grain for tender steak. If it’s hard to cut, I suggest freezing it for 1-2 hours before slicing.
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Pepper Steak
An easy pepper steak made with tender beef, crisp peppers, and a savory sauce you’ll want over everything.
Ingredients
Peppers and Steak
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 chopped red bell pepper cut into 1 inch cubes or strips
- 1 chopped green bell pepper cut into 1 inch cubes or strips
- 1 ½ pounds sliced flank steak sliced in strips against the grain
Sauce
- 3 cloves minced garlic
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar packed
- ½ cup soy sauce low-sodium
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
- In a medium-sized skillet or wok over medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Add 1 chopped red bell pepper and 1 chopped green bell pepper and cook for 1-2 minutes until tender. Remove and set aside on a plate.
- Turn the heat to high and add 1 ½ pounds sliced flank steak. Brown the beef for about 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-high and continue to cook until no longer pink, about 3 minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk 3 cloves minced garlic, ¼ cup packed brown sugar , ½ cup soy sauce , 2 teaspoons sesame oil , 1 teaspoon ground ginger, and 1 tablespoon cornstarch.
- Add the cooked peppers back to the skillet, then pour in the sauce. Continue to cook for 1-2 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken. Serve over rice.
Video
Notes
Storage & Reheating Instructions
- Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Reheating: Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until heated through.
- Freezer: Freeze leftovers in a freezer-safe airtight container for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Calories: 407kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 40gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.04gCholesterol: 102mgSodium: 1717mgPotassium: 790mgFiber: 1gSugar: 16gVitamin A: 1042IUVitamin C: 63mgCalcium: 63mgIron: 4mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Tried this recipe?Mention @alyssa_therecipecritic or tag #therecipecritic!
I normally do not comment, but this meal was awesome. It hit all the right things, easy to prepare, budget friendly, and the sauce was incredible. Don’t hesitate to try this one out.
Thank you!
If you are out of brown sugar and don’t like a dish to be to sweet, what do you do? Sorry I replied to someone else’s comment.
Hi Lauri, you can use honey, or white sugar, and reduce the amount to your liking.
I haven’t made yet. I have a question b4 I start. It calls for 2 tbsp olive oil divided. It states add 1 tbsp to pan to fry peppers but I can’t to seem to find where you use the other tbsp of oil. I’m going to assume it’s when you brown the meat. Please let me know. Thanks
Hi Heather, thank you for letting me know, I missed adding that to the recipe. Yes the second tablespoon of olive oil is for searing the steak. I will get it fixed. Thanks again!
Quick and easy to throw together and very tasty. Will make this again.
If I don’t have sesame oil what can I substitute with? Or can I leave it out?
It will not be as flavorful as sesame oil but olive oil will work!
Just made this for the first time. Amazing. Thank you
Lovely, but 8oz of steak for four people?
I used 24oz.
Excellent recipe and turned out fantastic.
Made this many times!!…… This time I used red and yellow peppers (3 total) broccoli, sugar snap peas and white onions…..I made 1 1/2 times the sauce, and also used a sirloin steak ….this recipe is a Grand Slam!!
Very tasty! I doubled the recipe but found it to be a bit too much sauce, so I made a note for next time to make 1.5x sauce. I served it with a combination of half cauliflower fried rice plus half brown rice. Definitely a keeper. Super easy and very flavorful!
That didn’t make sense
Too bad we can’t add photos so we can all see how it turned out.That’s disappointing
Hi there,
I put the recipe at 6 servings. it says 12 ounce 8 oz flank steak what does that mean? is it 12 or 8?
Renee
12 oz.
8oz + 4oz = 12oz
I made this last night and loved it. I added an onion and fresh ginger root. The flavor was amazing. I will definitely be making this again!
This recipe is absolutely amazing , I didn’t use flank steak but used round and sliced it up and it was very tender
Thank you!
Awesome recipe! I did add onions but that was the only change I made! Hubby said it was a “keeper”
Yum! That sounds like a delicious addition!
I added top roast to mine and onions the wife said it was a keeper
Are white onions good for this recipe
Yes, those will be delicious!
This was great! Simple ingredients, quick and easy to make on the wok. The only tweak I made was that I only put in a dash of dark brown sugar because we don’t like our food too sweet. It was fabulous! Served it over white rice!
Soooo good! My family loved it!!!