This quick and easy Chinese Orange Beef boasts perfectly balanced flavors and can be whipped up in less than 30 minutes on the stove top with basic pantry ingredients. It’s a great week-night dinner that’s even faster than take-out! Serve it with white rice or another favorite grain and a vegetable side for an easy dinner everyone will love.
Ingredients Needed
- zest of one orange
- fresh orange juice
- dark brown sugar
- rice vinegar
- soy sauce
- Asian chili sauce
- fresh ginger
- cornstarch
- vegetable oil
- flank steak – one steak that weights about 1.5 pounds. We’re using flank steak here and since we need it cut super thin, it really helps to pop it in the freezer for 15-20 minutes before you cut it. You don’t want it completely frozen through, just firm enough to add some resistance so you can slice it as thin as possible. Make sure to cut your steak “across the grain” for a tender bite. See this post if you’d like a more detailed description of that process.
- green onions
- hot white or brown rice – for serving
How to Make Quick and Easy Chinese Orange Beef
This is a simple overview of the recipe, you’ll find a full printable recipe below!
- Whisk together the sauce ingredients and set aside.
- Brown the beef in batches in a lightly oiled skillet, then transfer to a bowl.
- Add the sauce to the skillet and cook until thickened.
- Return beef to the pan, toss to coat, and serve over rice with green onions.
Storage & Other Tips
- Allow any leftovers to cool briefly, then store in an airtight container within two hours. It stays safe and flavorful in the fridge for 3 – 5 days.
- To reheat, you can pop it in the microwave, but for best results, I love to reheat it on teh stovetop. I find it has a better texture!
Frequently Asked Questions
We highly recommend it. It’s lean but filled with flavor, takes to sauce well, and cooks quickly. We know it’s more pricey, but this meal is worth it.
Cooking in batches ensures the beef browns properly and prevents the pan from steaming. It also gives you room to reduce the sauce without over-crowding.
We recommend fresh, as nothing can match it’s brightness. Bottled juice can work, just keep in mind the flavor may be sweeter and less vibrant.
Yes, somewhat. You can mix the sauce and thin the beef ahead of time to make sure it comes together as quickly as possible. If you’re preparing it fully ahead, reheat it gently on the stovetop to keep a nice texture to the sauce.
Quick and Easy Chinese Orange Beef
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2-3 teaspoons grated orange zest I just zest 1 whole orange
- ½ cup fresh orange juice
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons Asian chili sauce
- 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- vegetable oil for pan
- 1 ½ pounds flank steak trimmed and sliced thin across grain and lightly sprinkled with salt and pepper (to clarify: that’s one steak, that weighs about 1.5 pounds)
- 3-4 green onions sliced
- hot white or brown rice for serving
Instructions
- Whisk orange zest and orange juice, brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, chili sauce, ginger, and cornstarch together in a bowl.
- Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Drizzle pan with oil and tilt to coat. Add half of beef, breaking up any clumps and let cook without stirring for one minute. Stir beef and continue to cook until browned, about 2 minutes; transfer to a bowl and cover. Repeat with remaining beef and transfer to bowl.
- Whisk sauce to recombine, add to now-empty skillet, and cook over medium heat until thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Return cooked beef, with any accumulated juices, to skillet and toss to combine. Serve over rice and garnish with green onions.
Questions & Reviews
Yep, they’re from World Market 🙂
That’s so weird. It IS 2 teaspoons, but I have a page printed off from this very post and mine says teaspoons. Maybe it somehow got changed?? Only one other person commented on it being too spicy, so I’m not sure what happened! Asian chili sauces really vary in heat levels too. The one I use isn’t spicy at all so I could use a ton without a problem. I made sure the printable version is correct now, I’m sorry yours turned out so hot!
Oh no! Yeah, most chili sauces (like the one pictured) aren’t very spicy, they’re more sweet and tangy. That’s a good word of warning though; you never know!
My Fiance and I made this for dinner last night and it was great! He asked me to add it to our regular rotation. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Love that you’re doing a lot of Asian inspired dishes.
Loved it! I walked in the door from work at 5:10 and had it on the table by 5:45. I used some random steak that was in the freezer (defrosted just a bit in the microwave so I could slice it) and served it with a bag of frozen stir-fry veggies and some grilled pineapple on the side (yeah, that was a treat). Next time I think I’ll do it with chicken. I love recipes that I can whip up using my pantry and freezer items!
Oh, my goodness! This was divine! And miracle of miracles, my children liked it. SO much, in fact, that my oldest (9yrs) asked me to make it for his birthday dinner! And pretty easy to make, too.
Made this tonight and it was delicious! Thanks!
This was delicious and super easy. I used a Cara-cara orange and it’s juice, and 1 Tbsp of sriracha for some kick, also no fresh ginger, I used dried. Perfect balance of sweet and spicy. I used flank steak, but this could easily be adapted for chicken, pork or shrimp. Thanks for a new recipe for my rotation.
That’s great you don’t shop on Sundays-we’re Catholic and don’t shop then either. 🙂 This recipe looks great!