I love using my instant pot on busy sports nights, but let’s be honest, every weeknight deserves an easy meal after a long day. With my oldest doing baseball and track this spring and my second kiddo doing t-ball with two other kids to bring to every practice, I need easy weeknight meals! This instant pot beef and broccoli is a perfect option for those nights, or anytime you’re craving a takeout meal that you want to recreate at home. The sauce for this recipe is so delicious, I highly recommend serving the beef and broccoli over rice to soak it all up.
You can use any cut of beef for this recipe, which is one of the reasons that I love it. Your instant pot will make even a tougher cut of beef super tender and flavorful. It’s a great option for using beef stew meat, which is one of the cheaper beef options at most grocery stores. You can also take a larger roast and cut it into smaller pieces to use in this recipe. An easy and budget-meal is just what you want tonight, and making it couldn’t be easier. First, you’re going to steam the broccoli in your instant pot. You can also steam it in your microwave or any other way you prefer. You want it to be crisp tender and on the crisp side since it will cook a little more in the sauce. When I steam my broccoli I like to put it in the instant pot with water and set it to high pressure for one minute. As soon as the instant pot beeps that it has come to pressure, I release the pressure. If you let it cook for the minute it will be softer than you want. Just allowing the instant pot to come to pressure is enough cooking time for it to be the perfect texture.
Next, you’re going to sear the beef then add your onions and garlic. While it’s searing, whisk together all the ingredients for the sauce and then add it to your instant pot. After cooking on high pressure for 12 minutes, add a cornstarch slurry and cook on the sauté setting to allow the sauce to thicken. Return the broccoli to the instant pot and serve over rice! If you’re making this in advance and keeping your instant pot on the “warm” setting, I recommend keeping the broccoli separate until you’re ready to serve it.
- 3 broccoli crowns, cut into florets
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 lb. beef stew meat (or another cut of beef cut into chunks)
- ½ yellow onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- ¾ cup beef broth
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 2 tbsp. rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp. sesame oil
- 1 tsp. ground dried ginger
- ½ tsp. ground black pepper
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 3 tbsp. cornstarch
- Cooked rice for serving, optional
- Place broccoli crowns and 1 cup of water in the instant pot, add the lid and set to high pressure for one minute. Once the instant pot comes to pressure, release the pressure and remove the broccoli with a slotted spoon. Transfer to a plate. You are NOT allowing the broccoli to cook for the full minute, just to come to pressure.
- Set the instant pot to "sauté" and heat olive oil. Sear the beef on all sides, in batches if necessary. Once the beef is seared, add the onions and garlic and cook a few minutes more.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients: soy sauce, beef broth, brown sugar, rice vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Add ingredients to the instant pot and cover. Set to high pressure for 12 minutes.
- Once the beef is done cooking, make the cornstarch slurry. Whisk the cornstarch with 3 tbsp. of water and add to the instant pot. Cook on the sauté setting until sauce is thickened.
- Return the broccoli to the pot and serve over rice, enjoy!
Like what you see? Pin it here!
[…] Beef stew meat: I buy mine pre-cut at the grocery store, but you can also buy a larger cut of beef chuck, sirloin, or round roast and cut it yourself. No need to spend a lot of money on a more expensive cut for this recipe! The meat will become perfectly tender while simmering. […]