P.F. Chang’s Beef with Broccoli Secrets Revealed

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A comprehensive guide to P.F. Chang’s Beef with Broccoli at home! Beef with Broccoli is one of PF Changs most popular menu items! Today, I’ll break down all the tips, tricks, and techniques so you’ll be able to make P.F. Chang’s Beef and Broccoli at home even better than the restaurant! And for a fraction of the cost!

Download the full recipe document here:

P.F. Chang’s Beef with Broccoli Recipe

Wanna learn how to make P.F. Chang’s Dynamite Shrimp? Check out this video: https://youtu.be/wPI3oHmHemc

Ingredients:
Lee Kum Kee Less Sodium soy sauce: https://geni.us/s7oUST
Lee Kum Kee Mushroom soy sauce: https://geni.us/NkpS1cQ
Kikkoman Soy sauce: https://geni.us/ceyH1s
Kikkoman Low Sodium soy sauce: https://geni.us/DvY9K
Lee Kum Kee Panda Brand oyster sauce: https://geni.us/Ohr1
Lee Kum Kee Premium oyster sauce: https://geni.us/WJ3uM5
Minor’s Original Chicken Base: https://geni.us/yy0m
Lee Kum Kee chicken bouillon powder: https://geni.us/Z8NlPz
Knorr chicken bouillon powder: https://geni.us/qRslgi
Michiu Rice Cooking Wine: https://geni.us/3L6yZTn
Shaoxing Rice Cooking Wine: https://geni.us/mdvS
Baking Soda: https://geni.us/HSDr
Potato Starch: https://geni.us/KSad
Corn Starch: https://geni.us/NTH4v4
White Pepper: https://geni.us/ZMEiegw
Dehydrated Minced Garlic: https://geni.us/DTtJNsj
Sesame oil: https://geni.us/CgcpNw
White Sugar: https://geni.us/UWud7AM

Cookware used in video:
Made In Wok for Deep-Frying (affiliate link): https://madeincookware.pxf.io/c/5642915/1533155/14569
12-inch Mandarin Wok (for stir-fry): https://geni.us/yppwqb
Made In Stainless Clad Saucepan: madeincookware.pxf.io/6e3Ng3
Made In 2 qt saucier: https://madeincookware.pxf.io/c/5642915/1533150/14569

Kitchen Equipment:
Glass Bowls: https://geni.us/elrv
Wok Ladle: https://geni.us/AQmlKP
Butane burner: https://geni.us/yXYxEf9
Butane Canisters: https://geni.us/g4u9oM
Deli Containers: https://geni.us/rJXoK
Spider Strainer: https://geni.us/YOU8Cq
Misono UX10 Chef’s Knife: https://geni.us/0NB5
Wusthof Boning Knife: https://geni.us/UWaMXlL
John Boos Work Table: https://geni.us/XZXk
Cutting Board: https://geni.us/zIWbTB
Baking Sheet: https://geni.us/KJQxnsf
Wire Rack for Baking Sheets: https://geni.us/AC3NBh
Measuring Spoons: https://geni.us/Fe7U4M
Whisk: https://geni.us/D46KsN
Colander: https://geni.us/qAUGbY
Rubbermaid Tupperware: https://geni.us/FG5Z
Measuring Cups: https://geni.us/sKcCUZM
Salad Spinner: https://geni.us/IG5V
Anchor Glass Ramekins: https://geni.us/Jplij
Gray Kunz Sauce Spoons: https://geni.us/TfUe0
Squirt Bottles: https://geni.us/h1m4h0
Infrared Thermometer: https://geni.us/P9Bcr3

Music by Epidemic Sound (free 30-day trial! Affiliate link): https://share.epidemicsound.com/v23gld

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
0:13 Preparing the beef
1:08 Alkaline Soy Brine
2:24 Beef with Broccoli Sauce
3:56 HungryRoot
5:00 Velveting the beef
5:57 Cooking the beef
6:29 Cooking the broccoli
6:53 Rehydrating the garlic
7:21 Final cooking
8:32 Other cuts of beef you can use
8:48 Taste test
9:06 Thanks for watching!

Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, Jason Farmer may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from amazon.com

Today I’ll show you the correct recipe for P.F. 
Chang’s Beef with Broccoli. We’ll go over the precise ingredients and techniques they use at 
the restaurant. And I’ll reveal all the secrets behind their signature sauce that makes this 
dish one of their most popular menu items. Now, for their Beef with Broccoli, P.F. 
Chang’s uses flank steak. Because of its distinctly beefy flavor, this is one of the 
most popular cuts for stir-fry dishes in Chinese restaurants. One of the main things many 
cooks struggle with when preparing this cut at home is how to section it properly.
So, here I’ve got a 9 ounce flank steak. The first thing you’ll notice is these muscle 
fibers running along the length of the portion. Because of these long grains, if you slice it 
incorrectly, it can become inedibly chewy. The first thing we’ll do is make about 1.5 
inch cuts lengthwise with the grain to get the meat into manageable pieces. Then take one 
of your sections, turn it perpendicular to you, and tilt your knife at about a 30-40 
degree angle. Now slice the beef against the grain into about ⅛-inch pieces.
If you’re having problems getting them thin enough, just toss the steak in the freezer for 
about 20-30 minutes and this will firm it up, making it much easier to deal with. 
This is what the beef slices should look like if you’ve done it correctly.
The next step is preparing the alkaline soy marinade. P.F. Chang’s uses this on almost all 
their protein. This brine not only tenderizes the meat even further, but it also flavors the 
beef, seasoning it all the way through. And to make it, it’s very simple. 
All you’ll do is take 1 cup of water, and to that, add ½ tsp of baking soda and 
stir to dissolve. This will raise the PH of the water and make it more alkaline.
What this does is make it harder for protein bands in the meat to tighten during the high 
heat of wok cooking. This is what most Chinese restaurants use to give their proteins 
that fork-tender texture often associated with takeout-style stir-fry meat.
If you’ve ever added baking soda directly to a protein and felt like it gave it an 
off-flavor, using a brine like this is a way we can get all the tenderizing effects of 
baking soda, without imparting such flavors. Then to the alkaline water add ⅓ cup of soy 
sauce. For all the soy sauce in this video, we’re using Lee Kum Kee’s low sodium 
version, the one in the green bottle, just like they do at the restaurant.
Then we’ll add the sliced flank steak to the brine. You’ll want to marinate the meat for at 
least two hours. P.F. Chang’s actually brines all their protein for 24 hours, and I have 
noticed longer marination times do improve both texture and flavor; so if you can swing 
it, I recommend at least a day. Just make sure you refrigerate it the entire time.
For the Beef with Broccoli sauce, it’s very similar to the dark sauce we’ve made in several 
other videos, with one key difference. We’ll actually be turning the dark sauce into what they 
call Mongolian sauce. It’s basically a dark sauce with extra sugar. So, here’s how to make it.
We’ll begin by adding ¼ cup of water to a small pot. Next toss in ¼ cup of sugar and ½ teaspoon 
of chicken base. They use Minor’s Original Chicken Base at the restaurant; although any Asian chicken 
bouillon powder, like Knorr or Lee Kum Kee, will also work for this step.
Now bring the water up to a light simmer over medium heat and whisk until the sugar and 
chicken base are totally dissolved. Kill the heat, then toss in ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons of soy 
sauce, 1 tablespoon of Lee Kum Kee’s mushroom flavored dark soy sauce for color, 1 tablespoon of 
oyster sauce, they use Lee Kum Kee’s panda brand in the green bottle at the restaurant, although 
I recommend the premium oyster sauce because it’s just better; and finally, 2 tablespoons of Michiu 
rice cooking wine, and if you can’t find Michiu, you can substitute it with Shaoxing, which 
is much more commonly available. Then you’ll whisk everything together until 
all the ingredients are well incorporated. This is P.F. Chang’s secret dark sauce they 
use in like half of their dishes. To turn the dark sauce into the Mongolian sauce, 
all you’ll do is bring it up to a light simmer and add 5 tablespoons of sugar. Then whisk 
until the sugar is completely dissolved into the sauce. That’s it, super easy.
Once it cools down, you can store the prepared Mongolian sauce in a covered container 
in the fridge for about a month. Now, you all know I test every 
recipe for every video dozens of times before I publish it to you.
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After the marination, P.F. Chang’s velvets their beef slices. If you’ve never heard 
of velveting, it’s essentially a type of batter, usually made with egg and some sort of starch 
that helps keep the meat extra tender. Basically what it’s doing is creating 
a layer between the protein and the cooking surface so it cooks more gently.
To get started, let’s drain the beef slices from the brine and pat them dry with paper towels. 
Drying the meat before velveting will help the batter more closely adhere to it.
Then we’ll add ½ of an egg white and ⅛ tsp of white pepper. Mix the egg white and pepper 
into the beef with your hand until all the pieces are evenly coated. Next, toss in 1 tbsp 
of potato starch and gently massage it into the beef slices so they’re all covered.
If you’re having problems locating potato starch for this step, you can use cornstarch 
and it will work much in the same way. To finish, squirt in 1 teaspoon of neutral 
oil and give the meat a stir so it’s evenly distributed. You’ll want to let this 
sit for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight in the fridge before cooking.
To cook the beef, let’s heat several inches of a neutral frying oil to 350 degrees. Then, working 
in batches, fry the meat for about 2-3 minutes, making sure to agitate it while it’s cooking 
so the meat doesn’t clump together. This step in the velveting process is called, “passing 
through the oil.” We’re basically cooking the meat before the final stir-fry so the 
finishing process should only take us a couple of minutes to complete the dish.
Once you notice the edges of the beef slices are starting to brown, remove them from the oil 
and drain on a wire rack or a plate lined with paper towels and set it aside.
To prepare the broccoli, bring a large pot of water up to a boil and drop in 8 ounces 
of broccoli florets. Cook them for about 1-2 minutes or just until they’re tender. 
After it’s done, shock the vegetables in a bowl of ice water for about a minute 
to immediately stop the cooking. You’ll want to really drain the broccoli well 
after they’ve cooked because they have a tendency to hold a lot of water, which will dilute the 
sauce. I typically use a salad spinner. The very last thing we’ll need to do 
before cooking is to rehydrate the garlic. P.F. Chang’s uses dehydrated, minced garlic 
for most of their stir fry dishes. You’ll find this on the spice aisle and it’ll come in 
little containers that look like this. To rehydrate it, you’ll just pour over some 
warm water and let it sit for about 20-30 minutes. Then drain and squeeze the garlic 
of any excess liquid before using. You can prepare this a few days in advance and keep 
it in the fridge. You can also use it for anything you use fresh garlic for.
Now, before we cook the beef with broccoli, it’s essential to have everything ready to go 
beforehand. Because this is a stir-fry dish, it comes together within just a 
minute or two. So, it’s not really possible to prep as you’re cooking it.
To begin, we’ll start by heating some neutral oil in a wok over medium heat. When you’re up to 
temp, toss in 1 teaspoon of the rehydrated garlic, 2 teaspoons of minced ginger, and 1 tablespoon of 
sliced green onion. Cook the aromatics for about 10-20 seconds or just until they’re fragrant. 
Then pour in 5 tablespoons of the Mongolian sauce. When you notice the edges of the sauce have 
started to bubble, add the prepared beef slices from earlier and toss them in the sauce.
At this step, if you notice the sauce is reducing too quickly, you may need to lower the heat a 
bit. When all the beef is covered in the sauce, drizzle in a cornstarch slurry. This is just 1 
teaspoon of cornstarch mixed with 2 teaspoons of water. Turn the beef in the sauce until you notice 
it’s thickened and no longer appears runny. Next, toss in the broccoli and mix everything together 
well. Then kill the heat and drizzle in 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil. Toss everything together 
so it’s evenly distributed and this is it. This is P.F. Chang’s famous 
Beef with Broccoli. And very quickly, before the taste test, if 
you’re not able to find flank steak or if it’s too expensive at the store, you can substitute 
other cuts like hangar, skirt steak, flap, or even chuck. Really any long grained cut sliced 
thinly works well for stir-fry dishes. Now, let’s give it a taste 
and see how we’ve done. This is essentially the same recipe and 
process as the Mongolian Beef with 2 or 3 extra ingredients. So, if you liked that one, 
I highly suggest you try the Beef with Broccoli, because it’s quite tasty and it’s one 
of their most popular dishes. And if you enjoyed this video, make 
sure to check out the P.F. Chang’s Dynamite Shrimp video here. Thanks 
for watching, see you next time.