Easy Ground Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry: Your New Weeknight Savior

We’ve all been there: it’s 6:00 PM, you’ve had a long day, and the last thing you want to do is spend an hour in the kitchen. If you grew up with a busy working parent, you probably know the magic of a quick, throw-together stir fry.

Today, we are putting a highly practical, incredibly fast twist on a takeout classic: Ground Beef and Broccoli. Swapping out traditional sliced steak for lean ground beef makes this meal cheaper, faster, and surprisingly kid-approved.

Here is everything you need to know to whip up this 15-minute meal tonight, inspired by Joanne Pimentel’s fantastic YouTube recipe (Watch the full video here).

Why You'll Love This Recipe

It's Budget-Friendly: Ground beef is incredibly versatile and often much cheaper than cuts of steak. Pro Tip: Buy your ground beef in bulk (like at Costco), portion it into 1 to 1.5 lb Ziploc bags, and freeze it. You can just thaw it out whenever you're ready to cook!
Kid-Approved Flavor: The sweet and savory sauce perfectly coats the beef and veggies. Kids will eat almost anything if it's cooked in soy sauce and brown sugar!
Lightning Fast: Because ground beef cooks so quickly and requires zero chopping or marinating, this whole meal comes together in under 15 minutes.

The Ingredients

You likely have most of these ingredients sitting in your pantry and fridge right now:

The Stir Fry Base:

1 ½ lbs Lean Ground Beef: The star of the show.
3 to 4 cups Broccoli Florets: Add more if your family loves broccoli!
4 cloves Garlic: Minced for that perfect aromatic base.
Cooking Oil: Just a splash for sautéing.

The Sweet & Savory Sauce:

6 tbsp Soy Sauce
6 tbsp Brown Sugar
¼ cup Water

How to Make Ground Beef and Broccoli

1.Mix the Sauce:

In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, and water until the sugar dissolves and everything is well combined. Set this aside.

2.Brown the Beef:

Heat a splash of oil in a large pan or wok over medium-high heat. Add your lean ground beef and cook until fully browned and cooked through (about 4 minutes). Once cooked, remove the beef from the pan, drain any excess grease, and set it aside.

3.Sauté the Aromatics:

Add a tiny bit more oil to the same pan. Toss in your minced garlic and let it cook for about 30 seconds until it becomes incredibly fragrant.

4.Bring It All Together:

Pour your sauce mixture into the pan with the garlic, then return the cooked ground beef to the pan. Add in the broccoli florets.

5.Simmer to Perfection:

Stir everything together and let it cook until the broccoli is slightly softened but still has a nice crunch to it. This should only take about 3 to 4 minutes.

Customizing Your Stir Fry

Want a little heat?

If you love a spicy kick but are cooking for kids who don't, keep the main pan mild. Simply serve up the kids' portions first, and then top your own bowl with a spoonful of chili garlic sauce or a heavy sprinkle of crushed red pepper flakes.

Serve this glorious, saucy mixture over a warm bed of steamed white or brown rice to soak up all that extra flavor.