Chinese Pepper Steak with Onions – juicy, delicious ribeye steak, flavorful bell peppers, and spicy onions tossed in a sweet and spicy broth-based sauce with ginger, garlic, brown sugar, and soy sauce for a dinner that will put any takeout Chinese Pepper Steak to shame.
This easy Asian Pepper Steak Recipe is sure to become part of your dinner recipe rotations. You can have this classic Asian dish made and on the table in just about the same amount of time that it would take you to order takeout, and this homemade version is even more delicious. Cook your steak to perfection, saute your peppers and onions, toss the mixture in your homemade sauce, then serve over rice for a filling and delicious dinner for the whole family.
One of my favorite things about this pepper steak recipe versus takeout pepper steak: all of the ingredients are guaranteed fresh! You know exactly what is going into not only the steak mixture but also into the sauce. You can adjust the spice based on personal preference, and serve it with your favorite kind of rice. Your family will love this new go-to weeknight dinner recipe.
Why You’ll Love This Chinese Pepper Steak Recipe
- This Pepper Steak recipe calls for a delicious mixture of flavors.
- It doesn’t take long to make. You can have dinner on the table in 30 minutes or less!
- The sauce is made from scratch and is sure to be better than even your favorite takeout restaurant.
- It can be prepped ahead of time.
- This pepper steak recipe doesn’t require many dishes, meaning easy cleanup!
- The steak and pepper mixture is yummy served over rice (the rice soaks up all of the flavors from the sauce – it doesn’t get any better than that!)
- If you’re a leftovers-for-lunch kind of person, this steak recipe still tastes good when reheated.
Equipment For your Asian Pepper Steak with Onions
- Large skillet
- Plate
- Medium bowl
How to Make Chinese Pepper Steak
Step 1: In a large skillet heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the steak to the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from skillet and place on a plate. If your looking for tips on different levels of cooked steak, click here for a step by step guide.
Step 2: Add 1 tbsp vegetable to skillet. Add the peppers and onions and cook for 3-4 minutes or until tender.
Step 3: Meanwhile add garlic, black pepper, ginger, brown sugar, soy sauce, beef broth, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and corn starch to a medium bowl. Stir until well combined and add to the skillet.
Step 4: Bring to a simmer and cook for 4-5 minutes until the sauce begins to thicken.
Step 5: Serve hot over rice and garnish with sesame seeds. Enjoy!
Storing & Reheating Asian Pepper Steak with Onions
This Asian Pepper Steak is still delicious served leftover. Just store it in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 3 days. Reheat it in the microwave for 1-2 minutes or until warm. This pepper steak recipe can also be frozen (although we recommend enjoying it fresh). To freeze, divide into portion sizes and place them in sealed containers. Make sure that they are fully cooled before freezing. To reheat frozen pepper steak, thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat on the stovetop in a pan. I’ve found that adding a little water to the pan helps the mixture reheat better (no one wants dry pepper steak!).
Tips For Making the Perfect Chinese Pepper Steak
- Wanting to save time? Have your peppers and onions chopped ahead of time.
- Make sure that your sauce thickens enough in the pan before mixing it with the meat/pepper/onion mixture.
Substitutions and Variations
- If you want to add more spice to your mixture, add a few chopped jalapenos into the pan with your bell peppers
- If you want to add more flavor into the mix, add a few chopped tomatoes to the steak and pepper mix before cooking.
- On a low sodium diet? Use a low sodium soy sauce – this can be found at most grocery stores.
What To Serve/Pair With Your Asian Pepper Steak Recipe
- While this dish is very filling, especially served on rice, I like to pair mine with spring rolls or egg rolls just for something extra.
- For dessert, this recipe pairs well with chocolate lasagna, copycat Crumbl cookies, or lemon bars. Top it off with a fortune cookie, and you’ll never miss takeout again!
Pepper Steak with Onions FAQs
Do I have to use ribeye steak or can I use a different kind of steak?
For this recipe, I’ve found that ribeye has the best flavor and texture, especially being cooked in the skillet. You can use sirloin or stew meat, but keep in mind that these get a little tough.
Can I use olive oil instead of vegetable oil?
Sure, for this recipe, you can use olive oil instead of the vegetable oil. You won’t want to substitute the sesame oil in the sauce, though.
Do I have to serve it with rice?
No, you don’t have to serve this pepper steak with rice. It’s just my favorite! I love how the rice soaks up the flavors. You can also serve it with noodles or, if you want to keep it low carb, eat it by itself.
Be sure to come back and tell me how your Chinese Pepper Steak with Onions recipe turned out!
Some More Chinese Food Dishes You May Like
- Sesame Chicken
- Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Homemade Cream Cheese Crab Rangoon (Crispy Fried Wontons!)
- Sheet Pan Cashew Chicken {Better Than Take Out}
- The Best Teriyaki Chicken Rice Bowl
Pepper Steak Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Ribeye steak (2-inch long thin slices)
- 1 red bell pepper (chopped into bite-size pieces)
- 1 green bell pepper (chopped into bite-size pieces)
- 1 medium white onion (chopped into bite-size pieces)
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil (divided in half)
Sauce
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp ginger (minced)
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- 1¼ cups beef broth
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
Instructions
- In a large skillet heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the steak to the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from skillet and place on a plate.
- Add 1 tbsp vegetable to skillet. Add the peppers and onions and cook for 3-4 minutes or until tender.
- Add cooked steak back into the skillet.
- Meanwhile add garlic, black pepper, ginger, brown sugar, soy sauce, beef broth, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and corn starch to a medium bowl. Stir until well combined and add to the skillet.
- Bring to a simmer and cook for 4-5 minutes until the sauce begins to thicken.
- Serve hot over rice and garnish with sesame seeds. Enjoy!
Notes
- Partially freeze the steak for 1-hour before slicing. This will make it easier to cut the steak into super thin slices for the most flavor.
- Sear the steak in 2 separate batches. This will allow the steak to brown and not steam.
HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear about your experience. Getting feedback from you helps me and other readers too!
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I accidentally bought ground ginger instead of minced. Will this work? If so how much should I use?
Hi Brittany, 1/8 tsp ground ginger is equal to 1/2 tsp fresh minced ginger.
I made this tonight and while it tasted ok , I may have done things a bit differently. The beef broth made it too pungent, almost bitter. I think next time I’ll use chicken broth as it’s a tad milder . . Also I think I may take the vegetables out and let the meat cook in the sauce before adding them back in. I like my vegetables on the crunchy side .
Thanks for sharing this recipe ! 👍
Thank you for sharing your substitutions.
I followed the recipe as written and throughly enjoyed it. The sauce was good, because it wasn’t salty like a lot of Asian sauces.
So glad you enjoyed it.
Great recipe, easy, fast, delicious flavor.
I used one ribeye and it had good texture and flavor.
I’m so glad you loved the recipe.
I this recipe today. It was wonderful. I used a roast and ot required a longer cook time but it was very tender and favorable. I’ll desires make it again.
Thank you for sharing.
OMG!! This was so good!! I salt and peppered my meat while it was cooking for a little more flavor but that was it. My husband loved it! Definitely making this again!
So glad you loved it.
Every easy to make and tasty.
So glad you loved it.
Very easy and very good. A must try. I did add a little salt and pepper to my steak before cooking
Glad you loved it.
I loved this recipe. I have been making Chinese Pepper Stk forever, but have to admit,,this is better than mine! Thank you
I’m so glad you loved it. Thank you for sharing.
love those great recipes, looking forward to new recipes
love those recipes, looking forward to other great recipes
Thank you so much!
Can I use sirloin steak instead ?
Yes you can.
I LOVE this recipe.!
I have made several times and will make again. I added broccoli at the end this time and let it steam. Excellent!
The sauce is the BEST!
Thank you!
I’m so glad you liked it. I love the addition of broccoli.
I cooked meat as recipe called for and it was a little tough so I put in instapot for 15 mins and it was good. Also we used stir fry beef that was already sliced so that might have made a difference. It was good with broccoli added too
So glad you loved it.
We have to incorporate more chicken into our diet so today I made it with chicken breast and low sodium chicken broth. It was absolutely fantastic!
I’m so glad you loved it.
Hi!
I made this with chicken – 2 good sized breasts. My husband and I love it! So delicious!! Enough for a few nights 😊
Thank you!
This was great. Only I changed was I used beef bone broth and London broil. I added some cashews and green onions on top when done.
Nice EZ recipe.
I made it with top serloin that I tenderized with baking soda.
Loved it! I discovered at the last minute I was out of garlic (how could that be??!) so I added a tsp of garlic powder and it was great. Love the sauce.
I made it exactly like the recipe. It was fabulous! I will definitely make it again.
I wish I could find more recipes that taste this good and is on the table in thirty minutes.
So glad you loved it. I like to gear all my recipes to be around 30 n minutes, I hope you can check them out.
Made this last night and it was fabulous. If u knew how unfabulous I am in the kitchen, then you’d know this was a big deal for me to even attempt…..and I have a family of 6 so I dbl’d the recipe. Everyone has a 2nd helping and 2 of 4 kids expressed how amazingly delish it was. I literally almost cried at the dinner table bc it truly turned out so well. And I used beef broth and it was great!
My husband said he wanted Pepper Steak from the restaurant and I said I could make it. Used this recipe and he LOVED it. Definitely will be put in the dinner rotation.
Absolutely delicious
Made this for dinner, it was delicious! I added mushrooms to the vegetable mix.
I’ll be trying the pepper steak tomorrow!