I’m combining two of my favorite things today. My instant pot and Chinese food! This Whole30 instant pot beef and broccoli is about a million times healthier than the beef and broccoli you would normally get in your takeout order. It also happens to be a quicker option too, with only 30 minutes needed to put this on the dinner table! Got your attention now didn’t I? Thought so!
I remember when I first got my instant pot this summer and was terrified of it. I remember writing in the first recipe I posted here about how it looked like a spaceship (haha!) and that I was so nervous to use it. Compared to my slow cooker that has two buttons for low and high, this contraption felt like I needed an engineering degree to figure out. But, alas, I managed, and now I couldn’t imagine life without it. Bonus: my kitchen hasn’t exploded (yet).
If you’ve been hesitating on getting one for yourself, I’m here to tell you it’s worth it. Not only for easy 30 minute meals from start to finish, like this beef and broccoli or my chicken taco soup, but even for batch cooking! I love using it at the beginning of the week to cook a bunch of chicken breasts to dice or shred, pork, taco meat or roasts so I have a go-to protein for the week.
For this instant pot beef and broccoli, you can use flank steak or a beef chuck roast. If you use a chuck roast, make sure to trim any extra fat prior to cooking. Those cuts of beef typically are a bit fattier, but they’re also cheaper so it’s a good budget option!
Instead of a typical soy sauce (Paleo = no soy), I use coconut aminos. You can pretty much get coconut aminos anywhere nowadays. Target and Walmart even. My favorite brands are Big Tree Farms and just the Thrive Market brand because it’s way cheaper and I go through this stuff like water sometimes. I DID tell you I was a huge fan of Chinese food at the beginning of this, remember?
I did link to Big Tree Farms on Amazon, but just to show you what I’m yappin’ about. It’s way cheaper on Thrive Market per bottle (like half the price) so just a heads up there. Thrive Market gives you 20% off your first 3 orders as well, so you can maximize your savings there too.
The other ingredients used in this simple Whole30 instant pot beef and broccoli recipe are sesame oil, which is a staple for creating the well known Asian flavor in dishes. Along with using arrowroot flour as the thickener instead of cornstarch. Some other options for thickening sauces are tapioca starch, coconut flour or gelatin.
For my tips on cooking with gelatin, check out this post!
This Whole30 instant pot beef and broccoli is great served with cauliflower rice, broccoli rice or just on it’s own! You can make it for a quick weeknight dinner, or use it for your next meal prep. It makes plenty of servings to get you some delicious lunches for the week! Enjoy!
Instant Pot Beef & Broccoli Tutorial Video
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PrintInstant Pot Beef and Broccoli: Whole30, Paleo and 30 Minutes!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients
- 1.5 pound flank steak, thinly sliced against the grain
- 2–3 crowns broccoli broken into florets
- 3/4 cup beef broth
- 1/2 cup coconut aminos
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil (I use Primal Kitchen) or olive oil
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot flour
- 1/2 tablespoon grated ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- Sesame seeds to garnish
- Chopped green onions to garnish
Instructions
- Turn instant pot onto “sauté” mode and add avocado or olive oil.
- Once oil is sizzling, sear sliced beef (about 30 seconds-1 minute on each side) in batches, ensuring not to overcrowd or over cook. Transfer to a plate once browned
- Once all beef is browned and on the plate, add minced garlic to the instant pot and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute
- Add in the beef broth, ginger, coconut aminos, sesame oil, onion powder, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Add beef and juices from plate to the instant pot, close the lid, and set to “sealing”
- Select manual and set the time for 10 minutes
- While beef and sauce is cooking, place broccoli florets in a microwave safe dish filled 3/4th’s with water. Microwave for 3 minutes until lightly steamed for al dente broccoli. Drain water and set aside. Mix in with the beef after cooking. *See notes for additional way to cook the broccoli
- Once beef is done, do a quick release, and put the instant pot back into “sauté” mode
- Slowly add in arrowroot flour, using a fork to whisk into the liquid as you add it. Add in broccoli and continue stirring as the sauce thickens
- Remove beef and broccoli with a slotted spoon and arrange in a large serving dish or meal prep containers. Allow the remaining liquid to continue simmering and thickening
- Once it’s thick and bubbling, pour sauce over beef and broccoli
- Garnish with sesame seeds, green onions or additional red pepper flakes
Notes
Optional way to cook broccoli: Once done the beef is done, do a quick release, remove lid, place in broccoli. Close the lid again, set to 0:00 on manual, and set to “sealing” to steam broccoli. This will cook the broccoli more thoroughly as opposed to lightly steaming it for more fork tender broccoli. Then continue with step 7.
Nutrition Facts:
- Calories: 418
- Sugar: 5
- Fat: 23
- Carbohydrates: 10
- Protein: 38
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Nicki Peppel says
So easy and it was almost like ordering Chinese!
Maggie B says
This is so delicious!!! Thanks so much for sharing! I’m still new to my Instant Pot, but this is my fave recipe I’ve tried with it by far. It’s so juicy and delicious and great over cauliflower rice. ☺️
paleobailey says
I’m so happy to hear this! Thank you, Maggie!
Christina says
Made this last night and I cannot believe how delicious it is! Since I have a lot of mouths to feed, I doubled the recipe. Living on the central coast of CA, we have a cut of meat called tri-tip and that’s what I used. So good! I used broccoli from Costco and since it comes in big chunks, my daughter cut them up so the florets were the size of a fingertip. When the meat was done and I released the pressure, it was still piping hot so I dumped in the broccoli and mixed it around with the meat and sauce for 1 min. I removed the meat and broccoli into a bowl to then thicken the sauce, and covered it to steam broccoli further. Perfect! This recipe is a keeper!
paleobailey says
Wonderful! Thank you so, so much for sharing, Christina!!
Laura says
Tasty and easy but crazy salty. we used low sodium beef broth and low sodium soy sauce and even used less than suggested and I still feel like I just destroyed my heart. Highly recommend using NO sodium beef broth.
paleobailey says
It’s much more likely to be because you used soy sauce which has 880 mg of sodium per 1 serving, and low sodium soy sauce has 575 mg of sodium per serving – as opposed to coconut aminos, which is what this recipe was created with, that only has 90 mg per 1 serving. Even low sodium soy sauce would yield a result 6x saltier than it would compared the recipe followed as written.
Megan says
I just made this and it’s SO yummy and comforting (Asian food is my fav!). I don’t have an instant pot so I just made this in a skillet.
paleobailey says
Oh good! I’m so glad you enjoyed 🙂 Thank you so much, Megan!
Carrie Stone says
This was delicious! My husband was initially leery because I did another Whole30 asian inspired recipe that didn’t turn out so well. His first comment was, “Do you have plans for the leftovers?” because he wanted first dibs on them! Glad we have another easy recipe to put in our rotation!
paleobailey says
Love this!! Thank you so, so much!!
Helen T. says
Very good! I didn’t change a thing. Perfect recipe and we loved it!
paleobailey says
So happy you enjoyed! Thank you, Helen!!
Janet says
I just got up from the dinner table. We had this with sliced cucumbers and a salad on the side, because I was afraid that my husband would be hungry without rice with it. It was so good and he commented that we didn’t even need the rice. I used stew meat because I didn’t have flank steak. I sliced the cubes so it was more bite sized. I prefer my broccoli crisp tender, but husband likes it softer, so I followed the directions to cook on manual for 0. He loved it. It was so delicious. Thank you!! Now I can have my Chinese fix and still follow paleo. 🙂
paleobailey says
Oh this is wonderful! The stew meat sounds really good too!! Thank you so much – so happy you both enjoyed!
Natalie says
This is seriously the best recipe I’ve ever made. Even better that it’s whole 30!! My whole family loves it. This was my second meal ever in my instapot and my husband said it’s literally a “game changer” ???????????? thanks for the recipe!!!
paleobailey says
Oh thank you so much!! I’m thrilled to hear this!
Lauren says
Bailey! This recipe is legit. So freaking good!
paleobailey says
SO happy you loved it!! Thanks, Lauren!
Sharon Schultz says
Hi, made this tonight and it was very good. I did a few things different to accommodate my diabetes. Arrowroot powder has a whopping 28 grams of Carbohydrates in 1/4 cup. 7 grams in a tablespoon of cornstarch, so I had to change that. I added more vegetables and went with a stir fry idea, but this was the base for it. I’ll definitely use this recipe again
paleobailey says
I’m glad you liked it! Only 1 tablespoon is used in this recipe and there’s 7 grams in 1 tbsp of arrowroot- so it’s the exact same carb count as the 7 grams you said is in 1 tbsp of cornstarch. There would also be 28g of carbs in 1/4 cup cornstarch.
It’s also Paleo recipe, so being cornstarch isn’t paleo, arrowroot is the replacement for it, but I completely understand changing it to fit your own personal dietary needs! Love that you added more veggies, too!! 🙂
Catie says
Can almond flour be substituted for the arrow root?
paleobailey says
I wouldn’t, as almond flour acts as more of a coating (think chicken nuggets) instead of as a thickener which is essentially what it does for the sauce in this recipe. It’s also much grittier than the arrowroot starch. Tapioca flour would be a better sub if you have that!
Kerri says
Really good but a bit too salty for me. Next time I’ll omit the salt and probably add some mushrooms, red peppers and pea pods. Thanks for sharing it with us!
paleobailey says
Thank you!!
Ali Craig says
Hey! Love this recipe but just wondering if it really is 1/2 cup of aminos? Tried to convert this to weight watcher points and its 12 points just for the coconut aminos. Just wondering!
paleobailey says
It’s for the sauce, and when divided between 4-6 servings, it’s less than 1/4 cup per serving. I’m unfamiliar with WW and their points / what other options are- but you’re welcome to use soy sauce or tamari or whatever other soy sauce replacement you use!
Gina says
This was fantastic! Def. the BEST IP recipe I have made to date!!! Can’t wait to try more from your site!
paleobailey says
So happy to hear that, Gina! Thank you so much!!
Anne says
So bomb! Like everything you have made for us. Thank you. Delicious and easy.
paleobailey says
Thank YOU!!
Samantha Paggeor says
Tried this tonight and we LOVED it! The meat was perfectly tender and the broccoli had the right amount of crunch. This recipe will definitely be part of our meal rotation. Also, this is only the third recipe I have tried in my instant pot I got for Christmas ????
paleobailey says
Thank you, Samantha!! I’m SO happy to hear this, and so grateful you made my recipe!! Thanks for coming back and letting me know!
Shari Giarraputo says
Hi Bailey,
I was wondering what the taste difference is with regular soy as apposed to the coconut aminos? What exactly is Paleo?
Thank you so much
paleobailey says
Hi there! Soy sauce is a bit saltier and coconut aminos a bit sweeter, but it’s the Paleo version of soy sauce. Paleo is a term for eating unprocessed, whole foods- excluding grains, dairy, soy, etc. You can read my full in-depth explanation here: https://www.wholekitchensink.com/what-is-paleo/
Blakeney says
Would it be possible for you to provide nutrition facts? Its sooo tasty, but I always log my meals and I’m not sure how many Calories, etc. to log. Thanks so much!
paleobailey says
They’ve been added! I’m glad you enjoyed!!
Alli B says
Hello! Can you help clarify the steaming of the broccoli? You mention “quick release” when done – so do you mean let the pot come to pressure then release? I tried to do some research but it was a little confusing!
paleobailey says
Quick release just refers to what to do with the steaming valve to release the pressure. After the pot beeps when it’s finished, you have the option to do a slow pressure release by keeping the valve/toggle set to “sealing” instead of venting- that method takes about 10-15 minutes for the pressure to release before you’re able to open up the instant pot. Quick release would be toggling it over to allow the steam to vent out and the lid to open much sooner :).
Additionally, you can just steam the broccoli in the microwave for 2 minutes and just mix it into the beef to skip that step 🙂 Hope that helps!!