This Pepper Steak Recipe is easy to make and a great weeknight dinner. Full of savory meat and tasty vegetables, you’ll love this quick and satisfying meal.
If you are looking for other great steak dishes, be sure to check out these Delicious Flank Steak Tacos and this mouthwatering Ribeye Steak.
Table Of Contents
Pepper Steak Recipe Details
Pepper Steak is a delicious mix of thinly-sliced and marinated sirloin and vegetables. You’ll love how flavorful and easy this dish is.
- TASTE: Savory and infused with garlic and ginger, the flavors in this Pepper Steak are just so good.
- TEXTURE: Juicy sirloin with tender sauteed vegetables, every bite is delicious.
- TIME: This Pepper Steak recipe will take you less than an hour, including prep time.
- EASE: This is an easy meal to make and you can even prepare some of it ahead of time for those busy weeknights.
What You’ll Need
- Ribeye steak– sirloin, skirt or flank steak will work too.
- Marinade ingredients- Soy sauce, Garlic, Ginger, and Brown sugar
- Vegetables- Green and Red bell Peppers, Yellow Onion.
- Sauce ingredients- Soy sauce, Garlic, Cornstarch, Beef broth, Brown sugar, and Ginger
How to Make Pepper Steak
This is a quick breakdown of the recipe with step-by-step photos. For the full detailed recipe, scroll down to the printabel recipe card.
- Marinate the steak. Slice the steak into 2-inch slices and place them in a bowl. Then add all the marinade ingredients right over the sliced steak. Toss everything together making sure the beef is fully submerged. Cover. Let it marinate for 2 hours or overnight in the fridge (covered).
Pro Tip: To get the super thin slices needed for this steak recipe, partially freeze the meat. Then, using a sharp knife, cut thin slices. Since the meat is frozen, it won’t slide around and is easier to slice cleanly.
- Make the sauce. In another bowl, combine ginger, garlic, brown sugar, low sodium soy sauce, and chicken broth. Add 1 extra Tbsp of beef broth and mix it with the cornstarch before adding it to the rest of the sauce ingredients.
- Cook the steak. Over high heat, heat some oil in a large wok and cook the steak in batches so that it has enough space to cook properly. Set aside the meat when it’s done and stir fry the garlic and onion in the same wok.
- Stir fry the vegetables. Then, add the chopped peppers and cook. Allow them to remain slightly crisp.
- Add in the steak and sauce. Pour the sauce and meat on top of the veggies in the wok and cook it all together for five minutes. Serve.
Recipe Tips
- Slice the steak super thin- This step will allow the meat to take on more flavor and become more tender as it marinates and then cooks. Remember to partially freeze the sirloin to make this easier.
- Cut the onions and peppers the same size- For more even cooking and so they combine well the steak, cut the vegetables about the same size and just a little smaller than the sirloin slices.
- Use the same pan for the steak and vegetables- Save yourself the dishes and infuse your vegetables with extra flavor by sauteeing them in the same pan as the steak was cooked in.
- Add a corn starch slurry to the sauce- This will give the sauce a little thickness so it sticks to the pepper steak. Mix it separately so you can work out any clumps before adding it to the sauce.
Add-ins and Substitutions
- Add more vegetables- You can enjoy this Pepper Steak with more vegetables if you like. Try sliced mushrooms, asparagus tips, bok choy, or any of your favorites.
- Substitute different beef cuts- Besides sirloin, you can also use flank, round, skirt, or any cut that you have on hand. The better the beef, the more delicious your Pepper Steak will be.
- Cook the steak in the oven– If you would like to do this in the oven, you can. Make sure to cook it just enough so the meat doesn’t get tough and then toss it with the sauteed veggies and sauce.
- Add some sesame oil– A dash of this oil will impart a lot of great flavor to your Pepper Steak.
FAQs
The best beef to use when preparing Pepper Steak is Ribeye, Sirloin, or Flank. In this Pepper Steak recipe, I like to use sirloin, but you can use whichever one you prefer.
You can use any veggie you like in this dish, including onions, peppers, asparagus, spinach, cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, and more.
Serving Suggestions
Pepper Steak is so versatile and tastes great with lots of dishes. Here are a few tasty ways to serve it.
- Rice: Serve this Pepper Steak with white rice, Wild Brown Rice, or Quinoa Fried Rice.
- Chow Mein: Noodles taste great with this steak dish. Try this Vegetable Chow Mein and 30-Minute Shrimp Chow Mein.
- Salad: Start the meal with Cabbage Cucumber Salad or Spinach Salad.
- Sides: You can serve Garlic Parmesan Air Fryer Potato Wedges, Bacon Wrapped Asparagus, or Crispy Air Fryer Broccoli with this Pepper Steak recipe for a really satisfying and easy dinner.
Make This Pepper Steak in Advance
Make ahead: You can marinate the meat the night before to save yourself time. Just slice the steak and place it in a bowl, add the marinade, and then refrigerate until you’re ready to cook.
Storing: Pepper Steak can last for 3-4 days in the refrigerator. Just make sure that it is stored in an airtight container to keep it fresh. To reheat it, you can either warm it in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Freeze: Allow the Pepper Steak to cool completely before placing it in an airtight container or ziplock freezer bag. You can freeze it for 2-3 months. If you are making this Pepper Steak as a freezer meal, undercook the vegetables a little so that they do not turn to mush when defrosted and reheated.
More Tasty Steak Dishes!
- Ribeye Steak Recipe
- Delicious Flank Steak Taco Recipe
- Garlic Butter Steak Bites
- Juicy Air Fryer Steak (with perfect crust)
- Cast Iron Ribeye Steak
Watch Recipe Video Here
Full Recipe Instructions
Pepper Steak Recipe
Ingredients
Ingredients for the Marinade
- 2 lb steak Ribeye, sirloin, or NY
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp fresh ginger minced
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
Ingredients for the Sauce
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/2 tsp ginger grated
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1 cup beef broth + 1 tbsp
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
Remaining Ingredients
- 1 red bell peppers
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 medium onion
- avocado oil for frying
Instructions
- Slice the beef into thin 2 inch slices. Try to slice the beef after placing it in the freezer for about 1 hour.
- Place the sliced beef into a bowl then add 1/2 cup soy sauce, 2 minced garlic cloves, 1 tbsp brown sugar, and 1/2 tsp fresh ginger over the beef. This will be the marinade. Give it a quick stir to ensure that the beef is fully submerged in the marinade. Cover and let it sit for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.
- In a separate bowl combine 1/3 cup soy sauce, 1 cup beef broth, and 2 tbsp brown sugar, 2 pressed garlic cloves, and 1/2 tsp grated ginger.
- Dissolve 2 tbsp beef broth with 2 tbsp cornstarch and whisk it into the rest of the sauce ingredients.
- Heat about 2 Tbsp avocado or canola oil in a large 14-inch wok to high heat and cook the marinated beef in two separate batches. Cooking in separate batches will help prevent the meat from overcrowding and improperly cooking. Add a tablespoon of oil in between each batch.
- Once the beef is fully cooked, remove from the wok and set aside.
- In the same wok, stir fry the chopped onion and garlic for about 1-2 minutes on medium-high heat.
- Then stir fry the chopped bell peppers. Don't overcook the vegetables. You want them to stay slightly crisp.
- Add the beef back into the wok and pour the sauce over. Cook over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Serve over hot rice.
Notes
- How to freeze pepper steak
- How to make ahead of time
- Add-ins and substitutes
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on September 5, 2016, but we have tweaked it a bit since then.
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Julie says
This recipe is the best of all.I made it but marinated the meat and left it over night….when I put it together the next day….every body love it and the meat was so tender and delicious!!!
Loved it! Thanks
Julie
Dina says
You are very welcome Julie! It makes me so happy when people loved my recipes! Glad to hear everyone loved this pepper steak recipe! Thank you for your feedback and support! 🙂
Rebeca Carter says
I only had powdered ginger and I added baby bella mushrooms.
I served it with jasmine rice. No leftovers. Thank you for such a great easy recipe!
Dina says
You are very welcome Rebeca! Glad to hear you loved this pepper steak recipe! This is an easy recipe to make substitutions or adjustments as needed 🙂 Thank you for your feedback and support Rebeca! 🙂
Maria says
Thank you for an absolutely delicious recipe!! I’m so happy it’s gluten free too.
The only change I made to the recipe was that I added celery and I used gluten free low sodium tamari sauce.
My family loved it. This will definitely be on the menu rotation. 🙂
Dina says
You are very welcome Maria! 🙂 Awesome to hear you loved this pepper steak recipe! Substitutions work great in this versatile recipe! Thank you so much for your awesome feedback! I hope you find many more delicious recipes to enjoy on my food blog! 🙂
Sherri says
Love this dish! Added mushrooms too it! I only had regular soy which made it very salty. Next time I’ll make sure I buy low sodium. Husband loved it too!
Dina says
Hi Sherri 🙂 So happy to hear you loved this pepper steak! I hope next time with the low sodium soy sauce it will taste even better! Thank you for your awesome feedback 🙂
Colleen Sirisky says
I made this for dinner and it was amazing! My mother, who is very picky, said it was delicious and my boyfriend said it had such good flavor to it. I followed the recipe to a tee, except I used an e tea pepper and added some carrots. I will definitely be making this again. It was delicious!
Dina says
So happy to hear that Colleen! Super excited that this pepper steak recipe was a hit with your family! 🙂 Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your awesome feedback! I hope you and your family find many more recipes to enjoy on my food blog 🙂
Caroline says
I made this for dinner tonight, it was delicious. I did use low sodium soy sauce and I also used chicken bone broth instead of beef broth and added thinly sliced carrots. Yum yum yum. This is a keeper. My husband ate two plates, he said the seasoning was spot on. Thanks so much for the recipe.
Dina says
You are very welcome Caroline! So happy that you and your husband loved this pepper steak recipe! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your awesome feedback! I hope you find many more delicious recipes on my blog 🙂
Pearl says
I would like to prepare this dish for the day after Xmas how do I make it ahead of time and freeze it?
Dina says
Allow the Pepper Steak to cool completely before placing it in an airtight container or ziplock freezer bag. You can freeze it for 2-3 months. If you are making this Pepper Steak as a freezer meal, undercook the vegetables a little so that they do not turn to mush when defrosted and reheated.
Karen Everhart says
I made it. It was a hit. Making it again tomorrow.
Dina says
Hi Karen 🙂 So happy that you loved this pepper steak recipe! Awesome that this recipe will be a repeat in your home 🙂 Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your feedback!
Paul says
I made this tonight. Very nice. Great recipe. However I’m a relatively novice cook. And we found the results waaaayyy tooooo salty for our taste. I used Bragg soy which is low sodium so I guess it must have been the beef broth I used. Should’ve looked for a low sodium broth. Otherwise everything went well.
Dina says
Thank you for the feedback, Paul. There is a high chance that the beef broth is the culprit here. I always use low sodium broths for all my recipes. It’s always nice to have the advantage of controlling the saltines of every recipe. I hope you give this another shot with low sodium beef broth 🙂
Galina says
This dish is the bomb! So good and a new favorite! Thank you so much for sharing!
Dina says
You are very welcome Galina! Happy to hear you and your family loved this pepper steak! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback 🙂
Jasmine McCurn says
It was really fresh and hearty I loved it, way better than anything I get at any restaurant! A little disappointed that my sauce didn’t thicken. Though I’ll be honest it smelled so good and I was super excited to try making this dish for the first time, so I may have not waited long enough! Still an amazing dish. LOVE LOVE LOVE!
simplyhomecooked says
You are too kind Jasmine! It really makes me so happy when people love my recipes so much 🙂 Awesome to hear this pepper steak is better than any restaurant meal! Regarding the sauce, yes waiting will help thicken it up a bit. Thank you so much for your awesome feedback, and I hope you find many more delicious recipes on my blog 🙂
Mary says
I often see thin rib eye steak in stores can I also use that. Thanks for no loading your receipes with alot of ingredients. I tend to lose interest really quick. Hope to see more.
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Mary 🙂 I have not tried ribeye for this pepper steak recipe but that should work. Let me know how it goes 🙂
Liza Stasyuk says
One of my husbands favorites and he’s a picky eater! Even I absolutely love this recipe and I’m not much of a meat lover. Sooo yummy! Definitely a go-to for dinner when I don’t know what to make
simplyhomecooked says
Hey Liza, thank you for taking the time to write such a kind review! 🙂
Larisa says
This was a great recipe, very simple but so tasty! My husband loved it!
simplyhomecooked says
Yay! So glad you both enjoyed it 🙂