Crispy Chilli Beef is one of those Chinese takeout dishes that’s nearly impossible to resist. Thin strips of beef are cooked until crispy and then tossed in a sticky sweet, spicy, and tangy sauce with peppers, onions, and chilies. It’s bold, flavorful, and incredibly satisfying. Traditionally, crispy chilli beef is deep fried before being coated in sauce, but this healthier homemade version uses pan-fried beef instead, making it lighter while still achieving that irresistible crispy texture. It’s also made with simple ingredients and comes together in just 30 minutes, which means it’s often faster (and definitely healthier) than ordering takeout.
Ridiculously good! My husband said its better than the one we get at our favourite Chinese restaurant
Table of Contents
Why You Will Love This Crispy Chilli Beef:
- Better than takeout: Crispy beef coated in a sweet, spicy, and tangy sauce with tender vegetables.
- Healthier version: The beef is pan fried instead of deep fried but still becomes perfectly crispy.
- Ready in 30 minutes: A quick and easy weeknight dinner.
- Diet friendly: Naturally gluten free, grain free, dairy free, Paleo, and easily made Whole30.
Ingredients You Need:
- Beef: Sirloin steak is my preferred cut because it’s tender and cooks quickly, but flank steak or skirt steak also work well. Always slice the beef thinly against the grain so the meat stays tender.
- Egg: helps tenderize the beef while helping the arrowroot coating stick to the meat.
- Arrowroot powder: creates the crispy coating on the beef. If you are not following a grain-free diet, corn starch or potato starch can be used instead.
- Avocado Oil: A high heat oil is ideal for pan frying the beef until crispy. Sub with any neutral oil of choice.
- Aromatics: Fresh ginger and garlic add incredible flavor and aroma to the dish.
- Onion: Thinly sliced yellow onion adds sweetness and texture.
- Bell Peppers: Red, yellow, or orange bell peppers all work well and add color and crunch.
- Spring Onions: Also known as green onions, they add freshness and a mild onion flavor.
- Red Frescno Chilies: These provide the spice in the dish.
- Tomato paste: replaces ketchup which is used in many recipes to create a richer, cleaner sauce.
- Soy Sauce: adds saltiness and umami. Use coconut aminos for Paleo or tamari for gluten free.
- Apple Cider Vinegar: Adds acidity that balances the sweetness of the sauce. It can be swapped for rice wine vinegar.
- Honey: adds sweetness and helps create the glossy sauce. For Whole30, replace it with a blended Medjool date.
Kitchen Tools You Will Need
- Tongs or spatula
- Sharp knife
- Cutting board
- Mixing bowls
- Whisk
- Measuring Spoons
- Wok or large skillet
Tips For Perfectly Crispy Beef
- Thin slices are the key to crispy beef. If you find it difficult to slice the steak thinly, place it in the freezer for 20 minutes so it firms up slightly. This makes it much easier to cut.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan, cook the beef in 2–3 batches so the strips have space to crisp up. If the pan is too crowded, the beef will steam instead of fry.
- Cooking the beef on high heat helps create the crispy exterior without overcooking the meat.
How To Make This Crispy Chilli Beef
- Cut the steak into very thin strips against the grain and mix with salt, pepper, and egg.
- Prepare the sauce by stirring together tomato paste, soy sauce, vinegar, honey, and beef stock.
- Coat the beef in the arrowroot powder and then pan fry the beef in batches until golden brown and crispy.
- Add ginger, garlic, onion, peppers, and chilies to the pan and cook until slightly softened and then pour in the sauce. Return the crispy beef to the pan and toss until coated.
How To Modify:
- Use maple syrup instead of honey
- Add more vegetables such as broccoli, mushrooms, asparagus, green beans, snow peas or snap peas.
- Swap the beef for thinly sliced pork (I recommend pork tenderloin) or chicken
- Increase or reduce the chilies depending on your spice preference
Dietary Customizations:
- Gluten Free: Use tamari or coconut aminos instead of soy sauce
- Paleo: Use coconut aminos and arrowroot powder
- Whole30: Replace honey with a soaked blended Medjool date
What To Serve With Crispy Chilli Beef:
Crispy chilli beef is delicious served over something that can soak up all of the flavorful sauce. My favorite option is cauliflower rice for a lighter meal, but it’s equally good served with steamed jasmine rice if you aren’t avoiding grains.
You can also serve it alongside simple sides like stir-fried vegetables, sautéed greens, or a fresh cucumber salad.
Common Questions:
Unfortunately the beef loses its crispiness once it is coated in the sauce, so it’s best to keep them separate until right before eating.
The beef can be coated and fried up to a few hours in advance, and the sauce and vegetables can be prepared the day before.
Just before serving, combine the vegetables, sauce, and crispy beef in a skillet over medium heat and warm through for a couple of minutes.
Leftover crispy chilli beef will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge in an airtight container. Reheat the beef in a very hot skillet on the stove until warmed through. While the beef won’t be quite as crispy as when freshly cooked, the sauce absorbs into the coating which makes the leftovers incredibly flavorful.
Sirloin, flank steak, or skirt steak all work well for crispy chilli beef because they can be sliced thinly and cook quickly.
Yes, this crispy chilli beef has a noticeable kick. I would rate the spice level about 7 out of 10. If you prefer a milder dish or are serving it to kids, reduce the chilies to just one and remove the seeds, as they contain most of the heat.
If you love spicy food, you can easily increase the heat by adding another chili pepper.The sauce itself isn’t spicy, all of the heat comes from the fresh chilies.
Arrowroot starch is a grain-free flour commonly used in Paleo and Whole30 recipes. It creates a light crispy coating on the beef.
If you are not following these diets, corn starch or potato starch can easily be used instead and will produce a very similar crispy texture.
Here are a few more Asian inspired recipes that you might enjoy:
- Thai Basil Beef
- Black Pepper Beef & Onions
- Chicken Chop Suey
- Chicken Chow Mein
- Black Pepper Chicken
- Chicken Yakitori
- Sesame Chicken
If you make this recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Crispy Chilli Beef
Ingredients
- 1 pound Sirloin steak or flank/ skirt steak (500 grams)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup arrowroot powder (or corn starch)
- 2 tbsp avocado oil or neutral oil of choice
- 1 tbsp finely chopped ginger
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 yellow onion thinly sliced
- 1 red/yellow or orange bell pepper quartered and then thinly sliced
- 1 bunch spring onions cut into 1 inch pieces
- 2 red fresno chillies thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp soy sauce (or coconut aminos or tamari)
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar or rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey (or 1 medjool date for Whole30)
- 1/4 cup beef stock
Instructions
- Cut the steak into very thin strips against the grain. Place the beef in a bowl, add in the salt, pepper and egg and stir until all of the pieces of beef are well coated. Leave the beef to rest for a few minutes while you chop all of the veggies.
- In a bowl whisk together the tomato paste, soy sauce, vinegar, honey and beef stock.
- Add the arrowroot starch to the beef and stir it around with a fork to ensure all of the pieces are well coated in the starch.
- Place a wok or large skillet on high heat. Add 1 tbsp of oil and once hot add in 1/2 of the strips of beef. Cook them for approximately 2 minutes until golden brown before flipping and cooking on the other side. Once the beef is cooked set it aside on a plate and repeat, with the second portion of meat. Add more oil if the pan is dry.
- Add the ginger and garlic to the pan and cook for 1 minute until fragrant before adding the onion, bell pepper and fresno pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the onion begins to soften and then add in the chopped green onion and sauce, stir and continue to cook for another 2 minutes before returning the beef to the pan. Toss the beef to ensure its coated in the sauce and warmed through before serving.
Tried This Recipe?
Leave a comment below and let us know how it was!
Just made this for dinnerโฆ super yummy
Made this tonight for dinner!! AMAZING!! So easy!! So delicious!!
Ridiculously good! My husband said its better than the one we get at our favourite Chinese restaurant
A family favourite!
10/10 this recipe was soooo good! I make it weekly and my whole family loves it.
Arrow root starch is not SCD legal, what can I replace it with?
I made this for dinner tonight and it was so amazing! The steak was tender yet crispy. I love the spicy flavors in the dish!ย
How much Arrow root starchย