Instant Pot Mongolian Beef- Tender pieces of beef are smothered in a garlic ginger sauce with the perfect blend of sweet & savory. Quick & Easy! And healthier than take-out. { Paleo Friendly, Low-Carb}
How to cook Easy Instant Pot Mongolian Beef:
1.Press the SAUTE button on the Instant Pot. Heat sesame oil and sear steak on each side (about 1 minute each side).
2 .In a medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, red pepper flakes, garlic, ginger and 1 cup water. Pour sauce over beef and deglaze the pot (by stirring any bits on the bottom or sides of pot). Cook using the MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK setting HIGH PRESSURE for 8 minutes. When cooking cycle is complete do a QUICK RELEASE.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and ½ cup water. Add cornstarch mixture to beef and stir. Press the SAUTE button. Adjust the temperature to low and allow pot to simmer for about 5 minutes until the sauce thickens.
4. Serve over rice (info here on making rice in the Instant Pot) and garnish with sliced green onion. Or, see below for low carb serving suggestions.
Recipe Notes:
What kind of beef to use for Instant Pot Mongolian Beef ?
This recipe works best with Flank steak (thinly sliced).
How to cut flank steak
For optimum tenderness you’ll want to cut the flank steak i thin slices “across the grain”. “Across the grain” means cutting across the fibers of the meat (not the same directions as the fibers). The fibers on most flank steaks run the length of the steak. If you lay your flank steak on your cutting board so that the length of the steak (and fibers) are running horizontal (left to right) then you will make your cuts across the width of the steak (the short side). Here’s a video for more info on cutting flank steak against the grain.
How to make this dish Paleo
Sub coconut aminos for soy sauce, coconut sugar for the brown sugar and arrowroot starch for cornstarch.
Low Carb Serving Suggestions
Serve Instant Pot Mongolian beef over cauliflower rice, zoodles, carrot noodles or in lettuce cups.
Check out How to Make Perfect Instant Pot Rice if you’d like to whip up a batch to serve with this Mongolian Beef
Instant Pot Mongolian Beef
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb. flank steak thinly sliced against the grain
- 2 Tbsp sesame oil
- ¼ cup reduced sodium soy sauce or coconut aminos for Paleo
- ¼ cup brown sugar or coconut sugar/maple syrup for Paleo more/less to taste
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- Pinch of red pepper flakes optional
- 2 cloves garlic minced (more to taste)
- 1 Tbsp minced peeled fresh ginger about 1 inch knob of ginger, peeled and minced or grated
- 1 ½ cups water divided
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot starch for Paleo
- 2 green onions cut into 1 inch pieces
- Rice,cauliflower rice, zoodles or whatever you would like to serve beef over
Instructions
- Press the SAUTE button on the Instant Pot. Heat sesame oil and sear steak on each side (about 1 minute each side).
- In a medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, red pepper flakes, garlic, ginger and 1 cup water. Pour sauce over beef and deglaze the pot (by stirring any bits on the bottom or sides of pot). Place the lid on the Instant Pot and lock. Select the MANUAL button (or PRESSURE COOK on Ultra model) and adjust Cook time to 8 minutes and pressure to HIGH PRESSURE. When timer beeps (cooking time complete) do a Quick Release. When float valve pop up, open lid.
- In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and ½ cup water until well combined. Add cornstarch mixture to beef and stir. Press the SAUTE button. Adjust the temperature to low and allow pot to simmer for about 5 minutes until the sauce thickens.
- Serve, garnish with sliced green onion.
Absolutely loved this dish will be making again for sure! May add some veggies to amp it up a bit next time ^.^