Slow Cooker Sesame Ginger Beef

I’m picky about slow cooker dinners. I don’t want cream-of-anything soup, and I definitely don’t want meat that tastes like it has been sitting in a slow cooker all day. This one is different: tender beef, a glossy sweet-and-savory sauce, and the best smell waiting for you when you walk through the door. With school and sports starting back up, this is exactly the kind of dinner I need in my life.

P.S. Prefer a printable version? I’ve linked the recipe PDFs at the bottom of the post.

Serves 4-6 | Prep time: 15 min | Cook time: 8-9 hours on low or 4-5 hours on high, plus 20ish minutes to thicken

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef stew meat

• ½ cup low sodium soy sauce or tamari (for gluten-free)

• ⅓ cup packed brown sugar

• ¼ cup beef broth

• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, plus more for serving

• 4 cloves garlic, minced OR 4 frozen garlic cubes

• 1 ½ tablespoons freshly grated ginger or ~5 ginger cubes

• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more to taste

For the slurry:

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

• 2 tablespoons water

For serving:

• Cooked jasmine rice

• Sliced green onions

• Sesame seeds

• Chili crisp or chili oil, optional

Instructions

1. Place the stew meat in the slow cooker.

2. Add the soy sauce, brown sugar, beef broth, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, rice vinegar, and red pepper flakes right on top of the meat. Give it a quick stir or not - it will all melt and cook together anyway.

3. Cover and cook on low for 8–9 hours or on high for 4–5 hours, until the beef is fall-apart tender.

4. Take about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of the cooking liquid and carefully put it into a bowl and add the cornstarch. Whisk until smooth and pour back into the crockpot.

5. Cover and cook on high for another 20–30 minutes, until the sauce is glossy and slightly thickened.

6. Serve over jasmine rice with plenty of sauce spooned over the top. Finish with sliced green onions, sesame seeds, and a drizzle of chili crisp or toasted sesame oil. I like to serve this with some lightly sautéed sugar snap peas or some kind of green vegetables.

• The slurry: Adding cornstarch directly to the hot sauce can make it clump, so whisk it with a small amount of the sauce first, then stir it back into the slow cooker. The sauce will thicken as it finishes cooking and slightly more as it sits. For a thicker sauce, add another small slurry made with 1 teaspoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water.

• Gluten-free: My mom and sister are gluten-free, so whenever possible—and when it doesn’t sacrifice flavor —use gluten-free soy sauce or tamari. Always double-check the labels on your broth and chili crisp, since those ingredients can easily contain hidden gluten.

• Beef: I use stew meat because it’s easy and made for a long, slow cook. Chuck roast also works beautifully, maybe better. Just cut it into roughly 2-inch pieces.

• Sweetness: This is a sweet-and-savory sauce. I use ⅓ cup brown sugar, but you can reduce it to ¼ cup if you prefer things less sweet.

• Heat: ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes gives it gentle warmth without making it too spicy for my family. Add more, use less, or leave them out completely.

• Slow-Cooker - good and reliable.

• My favorite Tamari Sauce - tasted just like soy sauce but it’s gluten-free. I like the low-sodium version best so I can control the salt level.

• Frozen Ginger Cubes - I have saved an incalculable amount of time by keeping these in the freezer.

• Frozen Garlic Cubes - your hands never have to smell like garlic again.

xo,
Chelsea

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