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Crockpot Pepper Steak is a dump and go hands-off meal that is super flavorful, simple, and comforting. This Chinese inspired pepper steak recipe is a favorite when served over rice, noodles and more!
Crockpot Pepper Steak boasts a huge flavor profile of savory, sweet, and mouth-watering delicious! The slow cooker version of this stir-fried Chinese American favorite is full of sliced beef and sweet bell peppers cooked in an umami beef sauce.
This method really tenderizes the beef, much more than the stovetop does. This flavorful and tender crockpot pepper steak will be a new favorite. The savory richness of the dish and just how simple it is to cook and prepare will make you want it again and again!
Table Of Contents
- Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Ingredients
- Instructions
- Tip From The Chef
- How To Serve Pepper Steak
- Variations
- How To Store
- Recipe FAQs
- Recipe
- Recipe Reviews
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It's a dump and go recipe- there is no precooking the ingredients!
- The beef turns out super tender and flavorful, think melt-in-your-mouth!
- It's hands off throughout the cooking process- nothing is added at a later time!
- There is minimal prep time- just 5 or 10 minutes of slicing veggies!
- On busy nights with no time to cook slow cooker pepper steak will be a lifesaver.
More Easy Crockpot Recipes
- Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken
- Slow Cooker Ranch Chicken
- Slow Cooker Loaded Baked Potato Soup
- Crockpot Hot Chocolate
- Crockpot Chicken Parmesan Soup
Ingredients
- Beef sirloin strips: sometimes called sirloin tips or beef for stir fry when precut. You can also usesirloin steaks that you cut into long slices.
- Bell peppers: my preference is a combination of green, yellow, red, and orange.
- Onion: I prefer a sweet onion but a yellow onion works too!
- Garlic cloves: go for fresh garlic but garlic powder in a pinch.
- Beef broth: substitute with water, as the recipe also uses bouillon cubes to make a concentrated beef broth.
- Beef bouillon cubes: or packets.
- Soy sauce
- Worcestershire sauce
- Honey: can replace with agave syrup or pure maple syrup.
- Ginger: I use ground ginger but you can grate fresh ginger root too.
- Cornstarch: added to the broth as a thickener. For a thinner sauce, leave out the cornstarch.
Instructions
This easy crockpot pepper steak is made in 3 simple steps.
STEP 1: Make the sauce. Combine hot beef broth, bouillon cubes, soy sauce, worchestire sauce, honey, ground ginger, black pepper, salt and cornstarch in a mixing glass. Stir well, crushing the bouillon cubes.
STEP 2: Place beef strips into the slow cooker. Pour sauce on top. Add peppers, onions and garlic on top of the beef.
STEP 3: Set to LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 3 hours. If possible, stir the ingredients once halfway through.
When finished, stir well and transfer to a serving dish. Serve over rice or noodles or as a side with mashed or baked potatoes.
Tip From The Chef
If you like your peppers crispy, add them to the crockpot when there is 1 hour of cooking time left.
How To Serve Pepper Steak
While pepper steak is delicious enjoyed as is, especially for a low carb meal, here are a few suggestions for making it a full dinner.
Serve crockpot pepper steak over:
- white rice
- basmati rice
- brown rice
- wild rice blend
- quinoa
- Asian-style noodles, like lo mein or ramen
- couscous
- barley
- farro
Or serve with these favorite side dishes:
- vegetables, like broccoli, asparagus, brussels sprouts, or green beans
- mashed potatoes or baked potatoes
- mashed cauliflower
- crockpot mashed sweet potatoes or instant pot sweet potatoes
- roasted baby potatoes
Variations
- Change the color of bell peppers: use all green peppers instead of a combination of colorful peppers.
- Make it spicy: add red pepper flakes or even a few jalapeno peppers to make a spicy pepper steak.
How To Store
Storing: keep pepper steak in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Recipe FAQs
Is Crockpot Pepper Steak A Freezer Friendly Meal?
Yes! You can freezer pepper steak before or after cooking. To freeze it before, slice the meat, peppers and onions and place into a freezer safe bag. Pour the sauce into a separate bag. Store in the freezer for up to 6 months. When you're ready to use, cut open both bags and place the ingredients into the slow cooker while frozen. Cook on low for 6 hours. Slow cooker pepper steak can be frozen after cooking by placing the entire meal (even rice!) into freezer safe bags and freezing for up to 3 months (for optimal quality). Defrost overnight in the fridge.
Can I Use A Different Cut Of Beef?
Sirloin is the most traditional and most tender cut of beef to use for this recipe. You can use already sliced meat usually labeled "beef for stir fry" or sirloin tips. If you can't find steak for stir fry that has already been cut, use sirloin steaks and slice them into long strips about 1 inch thick.
How Long Does Pepper Steak Cook In A Crockpot?
On high, this recipe cooks for 3 hours and on low it cooks for 6 hours. I prefer cooking beef recipes on low so the meat gets extra tender and flavorful. But in a pinch, a shorter time on low is fine!
How Can I End Up With Crispier Peppers?
If you find yourself less than pleased with how soft slow cooked peppers turn out, add them to the crockpot during the last hour of cook time. Keep in mind though, that the peppers give the sauce flavor and you won't have as much of it if you don't cook them for the entire 6 hours.
If you enjoyed this recipe, make sure to give it a star rating and let me know what you thought in the comments! And follow me on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for more delicious recipes!
Recipe
Slow Cooker Pepper Steak Recipe
Kristina Tipps
Crockpot Pepper Steak is a dump and go hands-off meal that is super flavorful, simple, and comforting. This Chinese inspired pepper steak recipe is a favorite when served over rice, noodles and more!
4.40 from 508 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time 6 hours hours
Total Time 6 hours hours 10 minutes minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American, Chinese
Servings 6
Calories 267 kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 lbs beef sirloin strips or sirloin steak cut into slices
- 3 large colorful bell peppers sliced thick
- 1 large onion sliced
- 3 garlic cloves
- ¾ cup beef broth
- 3 beef bouillon cubes
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch or flour
Instructions
Make the sauce. Combine hot beef broth, bouillon cubes, soy sauce, worchestire sauce, honey, ground ginger, black pepper, salt and cornstarch/flour in a mixing glass. Stir well, crushing the bouillon cubes.
Place beef strips into the slow cooker. Pour sauce on top. Add peppers, onions and garlic on top of the beef.
Set to LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 3 hours. If possible, stir the ingredients halfway through.
When finished, stir well and transfer to a serving dish. Serve over rice or noodles or as a side with mashed or baked potatoes.
Notes
While there may not appear to be enough sauce at the beginning, the beef and vegetables will let out a lot of liquid and you will have more than enough at the end of cooking.
Nutrition
Serving: 8ozCalories: 267kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 36gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 92mgSodium: 1229mgPotassium: 931mgFiber: 2gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 2571IUVitamin C: 108mgCalcium: 30mgIron: 4mg
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Recipes To Try Next
- Crockpot Chicken Tacos
- Slow Cooker Applesauce
- Slow Cooker Chicken and Corn Soup
- Slow Cooker Whole Rotisserie Chicken
Reader Interactions
Comments
Cathy
I made this last night and served it with egg noodles.... It was amazing!!! I made it as written except I cooked it in a Dutch oven. I cooked it at 350 for 1.5 hours .... My husband and sons all raved about the flavor of the sauce and asked me to make it again soon!!!!Reply
Kristina Tipps
I am glad you all enjoyed it!
Reply
karenf
This was very good! I used frozen peppers to try to keep them from getting too soft, and I used fresh grated ginger, and brown sugar in lieu of the honey. Per another reviewer's suggestion, I added in 1 Tblsp. of sriracha sauce. Other than that, I followed the recipe. Next time I'll use more cornstarch, as we think we'd like it to be thicker.Reply
Kristina Tipps
I'm really glad you enjoyed it! Sriracha sounds like a great addition. I made this last night, as well and as usual it was devoured!
Reply
C White
I’d leave out the honey next time. It gave it an odd sweet taste that pepper steak shouldn’t have.Reply
Kate
Such good flavor! I cooked it on low for about 4 and a half hours and it was fall apart tender! So delicious will definitely be making again! I served it with a baked potato!Reply
Aurore
I see hot beef broth in the recipe, do you actually have to heat it up and mix the rest of the ingredients to make the sauce?
Reply
Kristina Tipps
The reason for heating the broth is to make the sauce and so that the extra bouillon cubes dissolve into the sauce. You'll have the best results if you make the sauce first instead of adding the sauce ingredients separately to the slow cooker.
Anonymous
Suggestions for making with pork instead?
Reply
Kristina Tipps
I have not tried this recipe using pork, but if you do I suggest cooking it on low for a shorter time, as pork tends to dry out quickly.
Reply
Abbey
Super easy and yummy. It was a little too salty for my husband and that is even after cutting the salt down to 1/4 tsp. I like it salty so it was okay to me. I will likely omit the additional salt next time and will probably buy reduced sodium broth. Otherwise it was good. (I also used 3Tablespoons of cornstarch instead of 2 after reading through the comments. )Reply
Jan
This was a very tasty meal, if sauce is ever to thin, I just pour the liquid into saucepan with cornflour and bring to boil then add back into crockpot.
Reply
Amber
Soooo good with Gotchujang sauce. I use Sir Kensingtons
Reply
Ken
I use better than beef bouillon. Do I still need bouillon cubes or can I add more btbb?
Reply
Kristina Tipps
You could use the better than bouillon, substituting each bouillon cube with 1 tsp of better than bouillon. Enjoy!
Reply
Kathy
This was so good! I made 2 minor changes based on other comments. I coated my meat with 2 Tbsp of cornstarch prior to putting in the crockpot. I still used the 2 Tbsp in the sauce. I added some red pepper flakes to my sauce as well for a bit of a bite. SO GOOD, will make again! Thanks for the recipe!Reply
Kristina Tipps
I am so glad you enjoyed it! A bit of a spicy version sounds great!
Reply
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