This gochujang beef and broccoli and kimchi recipe is such a flavorful meal made with kitchen staples! The ground beef combined with kimchi and broccoli florets are tossed in a sweet and spicy homemade 4-ingredient sauce. It’s the perfect quick weeknight dinner that comes together in around 40 minutes or less.
Quick and easy is the name of the game, and this sweet and spicy ground beef stir fry checks all the boxes! It is a filling dish that uses ingredients you likely have on hand and is perfect for a busy weeknight.
If there is anything that postpartum has taught me, it’s how to stare at my fridge and make dinner out of next to nothing. Without much desire to head out to the grocery store, a lot of my meals were made with whatever I could scrounge out from the freezer and pantry. This gochujang beef and broccoli and kimchi stir fry recipe was one of those meals that has been a hit and stuck around in my dinner rotation.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The stir fry sauce only requires 4 ingredients: soy sauce, mirin, gochujang, and brown sugar. There’s a good chance that you have everything in your kitchen already! I also find this combination to be very forgiving, so you can play around with the amount of gochujang or brown sugar to adapt it to your liking.
- You can use fresh or frozen broccoli for this. You can also add additional vegetables or swap out the broccoli for another veg.
- A nutritious meal doesn’t have to be bland or difficult to make! This beef and broccoli is full of flavor, and you won’t get bored with the leftovers. It’s also made in one pan, so clean up is a breeze. I serve it with rice so my rice cooker does all the heavy lifting, but you can serve it with whatever you’d like.
Ingredients You’ll Need
sauce ingredients — for the sauce, you’ll need soy sauce, mirin, gochujang, and brown sugar. If you do not have mirin, you can swap for rice vinegar. For the gochujang, keep in mind that it comes in different heat levels, so double-check whether you are purchasing a hot version or a mild version. You can also use dark brown sugar if you want a deeper sweetness to the sauce.
oil — you can use any neutral oil to cook the onions in, from olive oil to avocado oil.
onion & garlic — I use a sweet onion, but you can also use a standard yellow onion. Garlic is my usual the more the merrier mindset.
beef — you can use any type of ground beef. I prefer using lean ground beef, but if you use a fattier ground beef, be sure to drain the fat from the skillet.
kimchi — older kimchi will have more tangy flavor, so this stir fry is perfect for using up old kimchi in your fridge.
broccoli — use fresh or frozen broccoli! Whatever you have on hand.
How to Make Beef and Broccoli with Gochujang, Broccoli, and Kimchi
- Mix together the soy sauce, mirin, gochujang, and brown sugar. Set aside.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the diced onions and sauté for 2 minutes before adding salt and minced garlic. Continue to sauté until the onions have softened.
- Push the onions aside on the skillet and add the ground beef and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes, making sure to break up the beef into small bite-sized pieces until 70 to 80% cooked.
- Add the sauce and allow it to simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, making sure to continue breaking up any large pieces of ground meat.
- Add the broccoli and kimchi to the skillet and continue to cook until the broccoli has softened and everything is well combined.
- To finish the dish, you can garnish with green onions and sesame seeds, if desired.
Recipe Tips and Notes
- If you prefer your broccoli softer, you can sauté it first and set it aside to add back to the skillet after.
- To add more veggies to the recipe, you can also add spinach, frozen peas, corn, and/or carrots to the beef near the end. You can also add diced bell peppers to the skillet when you cook the onions.
- I like to serve this gochujang beef and broccoli with jasmine rice, but purple rice, coconut rice, or even corn rice is a delicious option!
- For some extra heat, you can add some gochugaru to the sauce!
Make Ahead Tips
- Meal prep: once cooled, store in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the fridge.
- Freezer: allow the beef and broccoli to cool before transferring them into an airtight container before storing them in the freezer. Store for up to 3 months.
Gochujang Beef and Broccoli and Kimchi
Ingredients
For the Sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce, low sodium
- 1 tablespoon mirin
- 2 tablespoons gochujang
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
Instructions
- Mix together the soy sauce, mirin, gochujang, and brown sugar. Set aside.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the diced onions and sauté for 2 minutes before adding salt and minced garlic. Continue to sauté until the onions have softened.
- Push the onions aside on the skillet and add the ground beef and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes, making sure to break up the beef into small bite-sized pieces until 70 to 80% cooked.
- Add the sauce and allow it to simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, making sure to continue breaking up any large pieces of ground meat.
- Add the broccoli and kimchi to the skillet and continue to cook until the broccoli has softened and everything is well combined.
- To finish the dish, you can garnish with green onions and sesame seeds, if desired.
Nutrition Per Serving
Got Extra Gochujang? Try These Recipes!
- Gochujang Salmon with Broccolini
- Gochujang Ground Beef Bowls
- Gochujang Fried Rice
- Gochujang Honey Shrimp
- Air Fryer Gochujang Chicken Thighs
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