This easy Crock Pot Beef and Broccoli recipe lets you have great Chinese takeout at home. With only ten minutes of preparation, let your crock pot do the work.
It is super easy to make at home with these simple step-by-step photo instructions.
🐄🥦Ingredients
Beef—chuck or sirloin roast
Beef broth—low sodium
Soy sauce—low sodium
Sesame oil
Garlic
Brocolli—frozen or fresh
Pantry ingredients—brown sugar, cornstarch, and crushed red pepper flakes
Jump To (scroll for more)
Beef and broccoli is a popular dish we all love in every Chinese restaurant, with its melt-in-your-mouth tender beef with vegetables simmered in a flavorful sauce.
It will become one of your go-to dinner recipes the whole family will love.
👨🍳How to Make Beef and Broccoli
No special sauces are needed.
Trim 1 to 1 ½ pound beef chuck roast or sirloin. Slice into ⅛ inch slices across the grain.
In a crock pot (3 quarts or larger), add one 14-ounce can of low-sodium beef broth, ½ cup low-sodium soy sauce, ⅓ cup brown sugar, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, and 4 cloves crushed or minced garlic—mix well.
Add the beef to the crock pot and cook for 5 hours on low.
At the 5-hour mark, whisk 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with ¼ cup cold water in a small bowl until smooth. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the crock pot and mix well.
Add about 2-3 cups of frozen or fresh broccoli florets. You can also add other vegetables like drained water chestnuts or snap peas.
Increase crock pot to high and cook until the broccoli is tender before ending—about 30-60 minutes. If the sauce does not thicken, remove it to a saucepan, boil it for a few minutes, and it should thicken.
Serve over rice and garnish as you wish.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
✔️Tips and options to make it right every time
Beef
- The beef needs to have some marbling but is otherwise reasonably lean. Sirloin steak, chuck roast, or flank steak are good choices. Stew meat can be used in smaller cubes and will not need to be sliced.
- The most important thing for the meat is to cut your beef thinly across the grain—⅛ inch or a bit more is a good thickness. Your beef needs to be nicely trimmed.
Broccoli
- Frozen broccoli florets will work well—anywhere from 12 to 16 oz is just fine. There is no need to thaw the frozen broccoli before adding it to the crock pot.
- Fresh broccoli also works for this recipe. When cleaned and cut up, one medium to large bunch of broccoli will produce approximately 3 cups.
Sauce and optional ingredients
- This recipe uses a minimum number of ingredients for great flavor. The primary tastes are soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes.
- The soy sauce contains plenty of sodium, so no salt is added. Low-sodium soy sauce and beef broth are recommended to keep the sodium level reasonable.
- This recipe is great for adding other ingredients like a can of drained water chestnuts or some snap peas. Add them at the same time as the broccoli.
↕️How to make this a "for two" or "family size " recipe
This is a very easy recipe to cut in half or double to fit your needs
The full recipe makes about six servings. Perfect for our "for two" household since we overeat and love leftovers. But make it a "for two" recipe by cutting it in half or double for a larger family.
- Use the recipe card and adjust the number of servings to half or double.
- Use the amount of ingredients in the ingredient list, not the instructions—those do not adjust.
- The half recipe will fit in a 2-quart mini crock pot.
- A double recipe fits in a 6-quart or larger crock pot.
- The cooking time will stay the same.
How to serve
Top with crispy rice noodles and slices of green onions. Serve with Plain Fried Rice or White Rice in the Oven.
Other Chinese recipes to check out
Try some other easy make-at-home Chinese dishes. Sesame Pork Ribs, General Tso Chicken, Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken, Cashew Chicken, and Chicken Stir Fry.
How to store leftovers
Store airtight in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. It can also be frozen for 3-4 months.
❓FAQs
This recipe fits in a 3-quart or larger crock pot. Use 6 quarts or a bigger slow cooker for a double batch. A half recipe works in a 2-quart mini crock pot.
Crock pots can vary some, so the endpoint is when the vegetables are tender and not the time.
One of the main ingredients, soy sauce, is made with soy and crushed wheat. So, it is loaded with gluten.
Japanese tamari is a perfect substitute for soy sauce. It is usually made with only fermented soy, but some traditional versions may have a small amount of wheat, so check the label.
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
Have you tried this recipe, or have a question? Join the community discussion in the comments.
📖 Recipe
Crock Pot Beef and Broccoli
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Ingredients
- 1 to 1 ½ pound beef roast - chuck or sirloin
- 14 oz beef broth - low sodium
- ½ cup soy sauce - low sodium
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper - to taste
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 2-3 cups broccoli - frozen or fresh
- 8 oz sliced water chestnuts - optional
Instructions
- Trim 1 to 1 ½ pound beef chuck roast or sirloin. Slice into ⅛ inch slices across the grain.
- In a crock pot (3 quarts or larger), add one 14-ounce can of low-sodium beef broth, ½ cup low-sodium soy sauce, ⅓ cup brown sugar, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, and 4 cloves crushed or minced garlic—mix well.
- Add the beef to the crock pot and cook for 5 hours on low.
- At the 5-hour mark, whisk 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with ¼ cup cold water in a small bowl until smooth. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the crock pot and mix well.
- Add about 2-3 cups of frozen or fresh broccoli florets. You can also add other vegetables like drained water chestnuts or snap peas.
- Increase crock pot to high and cook until the broccoli is tender before ending—about 30-60 minutes. If the sauce does not thicken, remove it to a saucepan, boil it for a few minutes, and it should thicken.
- Serve over rice and garnish as you wish.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- You can use the beef you want, but I suggest a sirloin or chuck beef roast.
- This fits in a 3-quart crock pot, while a half recipe will work in a 2-quart mini crock pot. A double recipe needs 6 quarts or larger.
- Trim the beef well and cut across the grain about ⅛ inch thick. No more than ¼ inch, please.
- Use low-sodium products since the sodium will get out of control here. Add more salt only if you need it.
- Add other vegetables with the broccoli if you like. Drained sliced water chestnuts or snow peas are suggested.
- Top with rice noodles, toasted sesame seeds, or sliced green onions.
- Crock pots can vary some, so be sure the broccoli is tender before ending the cooking.
- If the sauce does not thicken, but the vegetables are tender, move to a saucepan and boil for a few minutes.
- Good refrigerated for 3-4 days or frozen for 3-4 months.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Google will give you many examples, most of which are nearly identical. Food.com Crock Pot Beef and Broccoli recipe will be the inspiration piece—only a few minor adjustments for more sauce, taste, and options.
Originally Published April 18, 2016. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Gail says
I want to free this recipe but how would you recook it and for how long
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Gail,
Freeze airtight for 3-4 months—I use freezer bags. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat in a microwave. The time will vary by the amount you are reheating but usually 1-2 minutes.
I'm not a fan of frozen rice—it has a poor texture usually. I would freeze without rice and just make some Minute Rice for the leftovers.
Dan
Jeana says
I was wondering if cashew nuts would taste good in this crockpot?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Jeana,
Welcome to the blog.
Cashews will be great in this recipe. If you add them early, they can become very soft. Raw cashews may need to cook a bit.
So when and how many you add is more a taste thing. If you have raw or want softer then 2-4 hours to cook. If you use roasted nuts and want some crunch, then I would add them for the last hour.
Dan
Jen B says
I am a very novice cook and have been learning from your site, with some good success I might add, so thank you. For the beef in this recipe, sadly I don’t know what a beef roast or sirloin roast is - and I’ve never seen the meat labeled as such. (And as for English roast, 🤷♀️ no clue either) Is a sirloin roast the same as a sirloin steak?
Chicken & Broccoli is a favorite at our house. I didn’t see a chicken & broccoli recipe in your repertoire when I looked. How would I go about adapting it to chicken?
Thanks in advance. Jen B
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Jen,
Welcome to the blog.
Most cuts of beef will do for this recipe. You may not find "English Cut Roast" but you should be able to find a sirloin roast of some type. It may say top or tip sirloin. You could use a piece of sirloin steak.
You can even use the pre-cut "stew meat" which you can get in small amounts. If you get the stew meat, you may want to cut up a bit more.
I hope that helps. If your store is still staffing the meat department, you can ask them.
Don't be afraid to ask me again if it is still confusing to you.
Dan
ELIZABETH PEARCE says
RE; CROCKPOT BEEF AND BROCCOLI We also live in a motorhome and don't have access to a 6 qt. crockpot. Glad I saw the comment regarding that from another RVer. What cut of beef did you use for this recipe? I appreciate this website. Thank you.
Elizabeth Pearce
Texas
Karen says
Any substitute for the sesame oil? We are fulltime RV'ers so cupboard space is at a premium; just don't use sesame oil frequently enough to justify the space. By the way, we love your recipes! Most of the time we have the necessary ingredients without any special purchases. Thank you so much!
DrDan says
You could sub in any nut oil... peanut for example. But to me this recipe has enough fat from the beef so I don't need oil/fat but it was there for some taste. However that is only a small component so I would just leave it out. If you have toasted sesame seeds toss some on at the end.
I try to keep my recipes to "everyday" things. I don't like to hunt down a special ingredient and I'm sure my readers don't. Outside of a few Pensey spice things, I try to keep it to your average American pantry.
Thanks for the note
DrDan
Peter E Beckles says
I used arrowroot instead of corn starch but it didn't seem to thicken the sauce adequately.
I used fresh broccoli and one cubed potato instead of water chestnuts.
Does the fact that the broccoli [in your recipe] was frozen affect cooking time?
The complaints I got were that the potato was too soft and the broccoli was not crisp enough.
All agreed though that the flavour was great
DrDan says
Hi Peter, Sorry for the delay. I have arrowroot but have not used it in a crock pot yet. The corn starch works fairly well here. Frozen broccoli is partially cooked so it just needs to get back to temp. It did drop the temp way down for about 45 minutes. The model recipe used cooked broccoli and put it in at 30 minutes left. I added 30 minutes for the frozen factor and that seems just right. Since most crock pots are running close to boiling that far into cooking, the 1 hour seems to have been too much for your fresh broccoli and potatoes.
DrDan says
Yep it is a web site about cooking for two but recipes are frequently for more than two servings. I have a discussion about this in the menu "about the blog" section. You can cut it down but the lowest "common denominator" is the can of broth. I use it or toss it.
Yes I believe it would fit in a 3 1/2 qt. It might be above the 75% I like to stay under at the end with the broccoli.
Dan