Made in under 30 minutes, this Honey Hoisin Beef Bowls is the perfect mix of sweet and savoury! This quick recipe makes for a delicious meal prep or as a last minute meal.

Honey Hoisin Beef Bowls

Whenever I’m feeling lazy, I do this “recipe” where I stir fry some meat and pretty much just add whatever that is in my spice cabinet that I think will make it taste good. My go-to is usually something combined with hoisin as it adds such a delicious sweet but savoury flavour and all these ingredients share the same lazy susan in my cupboard so naturally, I’d just put a varying amount of each in.

Growing up, it was my all time favourite sauce and as a picky eater, my mom would just drizzle a ton of hoisin on top of whatever I didn’t feel like eating (or make me a quick stir fry), and I’d gobble it right up.

This honey hoisin beef bowls is a bit of a call back to that. It’s delicious, it’s easy, and it takes under 30 minutes to put together and 2 seconds to gobble it all up!

What is Hoisin Sauce?

Hoisin sauce is a thick fragrant Chinese condiment made with fermented soybean paste, garlic, vinegar, sesame oil, chiles, and sweetener. It’s sweet, salty, and has a strong unami flavour. Kind of like a Chinese BBQ sauce.

It can be used as a dipping sauce, marinade, glaze, in stir fry dishes, or just drizzled on top of plain rice to add flavour to it. Although in Chinese, it’s called 海鮮 (literally pronounced hoi-sin) directly translates to the word “seafood,” Hoisin does not contain any seafood or animal products in general as it’s made with soybeans.

What You’ll Need To Make This Beef Bowl

hoisin sauce
honey
soy sauce: I recommend using low sodium soy sauce
mirin: mirin is a Japanese sweet rice wine, if you are unable to find it, you can try rice vinegar with extra honey
olive oil
lean ground beef
garlic
salt and pepper to taste
optional toppings: green onions (also called scallions), lime, and carrots
rice to serve: I used white rice but you can use brown rice, quinoa, couscous, or whatever grain of your choice.

How To Make Honey Hoisin Beef Bowls

In a small bowl, combine the hoisin sauce, honey, soy sauce, and mirin. Set aside.
On medium heat, drizzle the olive oil into a pan, add the lean brown beef to it, and cook until brown, breaking the beef up into small pieces with a wooden spoon as you go.
When browned, add in the garlic and continue to sauté for 2 minutes.
Add the hoisin mixture into the pan and stir to evenly coat all of the ground beef. Continue to sauté for 2-3 minutes.
When done, serve on a bed of rice and with toppings of your choice. I served with some basmati rice, julienned carrots, lime, and green onions.

Recipe Variations

swap mirin for rice wine vinegar with a pinch of sugar
swap lean ground beef for ground pork, ground turkey, or chickpeas
swap regular julienned carrots for pickled carrots for extra flavour
make it spicy by adding in red chili flakes, sriracha, or Chinese chili paste

Tips and Notes

storing and meal prep: store these hoisin bowls in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
if you are not using lean ground beef, be sure to drain the fat out of your pan.