Garlic Beef and Veggie Ramen is an easy dinner recipe that is so much better than take-out!
This dish does have a few steps to it, but it comes together pretty quickly and flows well. Most is done all in one skillet (or a wok if you have one), but you will use an extra pot to cook the ramen in. Technically you can cook the ramen in the sauce at the end, but I preferred the taste/texture better with the noodles cooked separately (especially if you are going to have leftovers!).
Speaking of the ramen noodles, you’ll barely boil them to keep them from getting mushy. The package says to cook them for 3 minutes, but I remove them right at 2 minutes and then drain and rinse in cold water. This way when you mix the noodles with the sauce and other ingredients, it has a chance to get a little more tender without getting mushy.
I discard the seasoning packets in the noodles, but you can use those in place of the beef stock/broth (just add 1 cup water), but beware of the dish being a bit salty if you use those packets. And definitely make sure to use low sodium soy sauce to avoid an overly salty dish.
Enjoy!
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Garlic Beef and Veggie Ramen
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce, separated
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 2 and 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic, separated
- 3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon cornstarch, separated
- 1 pound flank steak
- 3-5 tablespoons vegetable oil, separated
- Assorted veggies: 8 ounces sliced mushrooms, 8 ounces snap peas, 1 cup shredded carrots, 1 red bell pepper
- 2 packages (3 ounces each) ramen noodles (discard seasoning packets; use just the noodles!)
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 cup low-sodium beef stock or broth
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 1/2 cup brown sugar*, packed
- 1/2 - 1 full teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Optional: green onions
Instructions
- OPTIONAL: marinade the meat. Toss together 1/4 cup soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and 1 tablespoon minced garlic. Very thinly slice the flank steak against the grain into 1/4th inch thick strips and then into 2 inch pieces. Place the steak pieces in the marinade and set out at room temperature for 20-30 minutes. OR cover tightly and place in the fridge for up to 8 hours. If you want this to be a true 30-minute dinner, skip this step!
- While the meat is marinating, prep and cook the veggies. Place 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet or wok and add in the sliced mushrooms, snap peas, shredded carrots, and chopped red bell pepper. Cook over medium high heat until crisp tender and transfer to a bowl/plate.
- Remove the meat and drain off any remaining marinade. Toss the meat to coat with the cornstarch in a large plastic bag. Alternatively use your fingers to work the cornstarch into the meat. Make sure all of the meat is well coated in cornstarch.
- Add another tablespoon of oil. Heat until the oil is shimmering and then add in 1/2 the beef so it can be in a single layer. Cook without moving until the beef is well seared, about 1-1/2 minutes. Continue cooking while stirring until the beef is lightly cooked but still pink in spots, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate.
- Add in the last remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan and heat until shimmering. Add the remaining beef and cook without moving until the beef is well seared, about 1-1/2 minutes. Cook for another 30 seconds. Transfer the rest of the beef to the plate.
- In that same skillet or wok, add in the sesame oil, remaining 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons soy sauce, beef stock or broth, remaining 1 and 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic, minced ginger, brown sugar* (add to your taste preference, we like a lot of sugar in this dish), and red pepper flakes.
- Stir and cook (uncovered) over medium heat until sauce thickens a bit and reduces by about a third (about 10-12 minutes). You don't want to reduce it too much so it can still generously coat all the noodles & veggies.
- In a small dish, whisk together remaining 1 teaspoon cornstarch with 1 teaspoon water until smooth. Whisk into the sauce.
- While the sauce is reducing, boil a small pot of water and cook the ramen noodles for exactly 2 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water.
- Add the cooked veggies, cooked meat, and drained ramen noodles into the sauce. Toss to coat and top with green onions. Add some cracked pepper and additional red pepper flakes if desired. Enjoy immediately.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I only made one adjustment as I used Hokkien noodles since I had them. Warmed them for mint in microwave. It was delicious!
I am so thrilled to hear this! Thanks so much Rebecca! 🙂
Hi there! I’d been dying to make this for a few months and my 20 yo sin and I finally had the chance last night.
We made the recipe as written except I didn’t have a red (or ant color) pepper. I also chose to marinate my beef.
1. The prep work seemed to take forever. Maybe it’s bc my son talks more than he works, but it took awhile.
2. The recipe was VERY spicy.
3. The sauce was extremely thick and I will likely eliminate the step of coating the meat in cornstarch; it was messy and made it difficult to sear the beef and the cornstarch just made everything clump up. And, this step required much more oil to complete.
Otherwise, I’m looking forward to making this again.
Love your notes! So glad you guys enjoyed this! You can definitely cut back on the spice next time by cutting back or leaving out the red pepper flakes! Thanks Margaret! 🙂
Loved this recipe, but I used venison back-strap and omitted the brown sugar
I am so happy this was a hit! Thanks for your comment! 🙂
While the flavor was great, this was not a simple 30 minute meal. A lot of time was wasted because the instructions are out of order. Ingredients would be better listed as ” 1 red bell pepper, sliced” or “2 packages ramen noodles, precooked for 2 min.” I like the flavor, but won’t be making this again.
I am going to make this on Monfay but one of my guests doesn’t eat mushrooms. Which vegetable would you substitute for the 8 oz of mushrooms?
You could just leave it out or add zucchini! 🙂
Family favorite. We do not put in the bell pepper due to a food allergy. We triple the meat and marinade and double the rest. We absolutely love it.
I am so thrilled to hear this! Thanks so much Kelly! 🙂
Very tasty. Made it for dinner today. I recommend not using the cornstarch/water mix. If you reduce your sauce enough it is plenty thick. Using the cornstarch made mine too thick and I had to add more water.
Thanks so much Erin! 🙂