This easy to make slow cooker Asian braised beef combines garlic, ginger, lemongrass, soy sauce, and rice vinegar to create a delicious hearty dish.
I cannot live without my slow cooker. I make all sorts of food in my slow cooker from crème brûlée to loaded baked potato soup.
The vast majority of slow cooker recipes are reserved for American or French foods.Let’s change that! Let’s add some Asian foods into the mix!
I guess when I think slow cooker, I envision a lot braised beefs, creamy soups, and hearty stews.
You don’t normally see a lot of Asian foods prepared in slow cookers. Naturally, I had to experiment. I tried out a dish I would normally cook in the oven or on the stove. This is my beloved slow cooker Asian braised beef recipe.
This is a family favorite. I have yet to meet someone that didn’t enjoy this easy recipe!
It is slightly sweet, yet still super savory. It cannot be eaten alone, and it best served with rice, noodles, or made into a sandwich à la bánh mì-style.
Ingredients
I used a variety of flavors unique to all of Asian. As such, it’s not associated to just one country or cuisine. I guess it kind of encompasses everything, like a melting pot.
The key components are: lemongrass, garlic, hoisin sauce, ginger, rice vinegar and soy sauce.
Just like other braised meat dishes, this tastes even better the following day once the meat has had time to rest and soak up all the flavors of the sauce.
Which cut of beef is best for braising?
I suggest using beef chuck. Beef chuck is a tough but flavorful cut of meat. It has a decent amount of fat and connective tissue.
Through slow cooking, like braising, the tough meat tenderizes. The connective tissues breaks down resulting with a rich, gelatinous tender piece of meat. Best of all, beef check is relatively inexpensive compared to other cuts.
Other beef cut options:
- Brisket: another inexpensive option
- Short-Ribs: for the ultimate braised beef, but also the most priciest
I don’t have a slow cooker. Can I cook this recipe stove-top?
Yes, this Asian braised beef recipe can be cooked stove-top. Follow the instructions as listed in the recipe.
Instead of cooking in a slow cooker, set heavy bottom pot (like dutch-oven pot), over medium heat.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cover pot and let simmer for 3-4 hours until beef is tender. Occasionally remove pot cover and stir.
*I have not yet tested this recipe in an instant pot. I will update will results soon.
More Dinner Ideas
- Spicy garlic shrimp spaghetti is a one pot meal that simply requires a handful of ingredients.
- Stir fry beef with onions and scallions combines the flavors of Filipino bistek and Vietnamese bo luc lac.
- This soy ginger shrimp dish is sure to impress any dinner date!
- Sesame soy sauce roasted turkey puts an Asian twist on classic turkey.
Slow Cooker Asian Braised Beef
Equipment
- Slow Cooker or Multicooker
Ingredients
- 3 pounds beef chuck, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes, excess fat trimmed
- 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil, or grapeseed oil
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced (green and light green parts)
- 2-inch piece of ginger, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 stalk lemongrass, cut into thirds and pounded
- 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
- ½ cup reduced-sodium (light) soy sauce
- ¼ cup hoisin sauce
- ½ cup rice vinegar
- ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 Tablespoons Sriracha sauce
Instructions
- In a small bowl whisk together flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge cut beef into flour mixture. Shake off any excess flour. Set aside.
- In a medium sized skillet, add vegetable oil and warm up over medium heat. Once warm, brown (sear) beef in batches. Not need to fully cook meat, you just want to have a nice crust while cooking off the flour. Place seared beef in slow cooker.
- In the same pot you cooked beef, add minced garlic and ginger. Cook until fragrant. Add lemongrass and cook until garlic begins to brown. Add red pepper flakes and chicken broth. Transfer mixture to slow cooker.
- In a bowl, whisk together soy sauce, hoisin sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, and Sriracha. Add to slow cooker. Add green onions.
- Cover slow cooker. Cook for 4-5 hours on high heat, or 6-8 hours on low heat. Serve with rice, noodles or crusty bread.All images and text ©The Little Epicurean
Notes
- Stove Top: nstead of cooking in a slow cooker, set heavy bottom pot (like dutch-oven pot), over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cover pot and let simmer for 3-4 hours until beef is tender. Occasionally remove pot cover and stir.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Did you use bone in or boneless if using short ribs
You can use either. Bone-in short ribs will produce a more flavorful sauce. However, the bones will also increase the amount of fat in the sauce (which you can skim off if you’d like). Sometimes cuts of meat are labeled “boneless short rib” are actually chuck flap. I hope that helps!
Made this last night, it was fantastic. I used beef chin which was fall apart tender after 4h cooked on high.
Made this last night. My whole family loved it. Didn’t have lemongrass but it was still delicious
Can this recipe be done as a oven braise?
Yes, this recipe may be cooked in the oven instead of a slower cooker. It should take about 2-3 hours in a 350 degree F oven.
I loved this recipe! As I couldn’t get hold of Sriracha sauce, I substituted it with M&S chilli ketchup and that worked fine. Also I used more ginger. Added the sugar in the last hour, which was a tip from my son’s Chinese girlfriend. Very enjoyable.
Cozy Comforting Dish with Loads of Flavor
I was in the mood for trying to make my first braised meat in my electric pressure cooker but wanted a new twist, perhaps something with Asian flavors. A quick internet search led me here and boy am I glad it did!
I scaled down the recipe for the 1.75 pound chuck roast I had and cooked it in my pressure cooker on the meat setting on high for 60 minutes. I let it depressurize on its own for 15 minutes then popped the top off. The whole thing turned out gorgeous and perfectly done. I sautéd the liquid down for about 5 minutes while I finished the rice and Napa cabbage I served it with. I garnished the dish with some freshly chopped green onion.
The beef’s flavors were complex and layered with just a touch of sweetness without overwhelming the flavors of the rice, or the fully flavored beef. It felt like perfect comfort food. I would definitely make this again for friends and family. Looking forward to my leftovers.
Thank you Maryanne for this fantastic recipe – it is my absolute favourite of all time! What a combination of rich flavours that all came together superbly! I was only missing one ingredient (the Sriracha sauce) so I substituted Sambal (extra pedas) and it still had that spicy kick that you described in previous replies. I also added rehydrated sliced Shitake mushrooms to it as we like mushrooms in everything. This will definitely be my go-to slow cooker beef dish from now on as it defintely beats boring beef stew!!!
This was delicious!! Made it with pork shoulder as that’s what I had available. Deep, rich flavors that could easily work with chicken as well. I seared the meat as directed and finished cooking the recipe in a 350 degree oven for 2 hours. I added a little extra liquid half way through. Awesome results!
This was delicious! I adapted it for the pressure cooker by reducing the broth and thickening the sauce after.
I have had a similar dish that an exchange student who lived with us from China. It had brown hard boiled eggs in it. Have you ever heard of such a dish? Would love to had her recipe.