Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef - Dump and Go Dinner

Plan This Recipe Print

Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef - Dump and Go Dinner

Heather
The Cook
4 Servings
11 Ingredients
174 Comments

This Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef is easier than getting takeout! Throw a few ingredients in the slow cooker, and come home to a wonderful Asian inspired meal!

4 Servings
11 Ingredients
174 Comments

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds Flank Steak, Sliced
  • ¼ cups Cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
  • ½ teaspoons mince Garlic, Cloves
  • ½ teaspoons peel and mince Ginger, Fresh
  • ¾ cups Soy Sauce
  • ¾ cups Water
  • ¾ cups Brown Sugar
  • ½ cups grate Carrot
  • ⅓ cups slice Green Onion (Scallion)
Serving Day Ingredients
  • 4 cups cook White Rice, Long-Grain

Containers

Supplies

  • Labels

Cooking Instructions

Freeze For Later Cooking Day Directions

Easy Assembly/Dump and Go

These directions help you cook or prepare this meal PRIOR to being frozen for serving later (see Serving Day Directions when you are ready to prepare it to eat).

Why would I want to freeze this?

  1. Coat flank steak in cornstarch.
  2. 3390515 Upgrade to a paid membership 92284 to unlock all instructions 17459
  3. 369865 Upgrade to a paid membership 99213 to unlock all instructions 75159

Upgrade to a paid membership to unlock all recipe instructions

Make From Frozen Serving Day Directions

Slow Cooker

These directions help you cook or reheat this meal AFTER it's been frozen for when you are ready to eat it.

  1. Thaw: In fridge
  2. 4851037 Upgrade to a paid membership 86838 to unlock all instructions 65113
  3. 2751663 Upgrade to a paid membership 74481 to unlock all instructions 52701

Upgrade to a paid membership to unlock all recipe instructions

Make It Now Cooking Directions

These directions are for cooking this recipe to serve immediately and NOT to freeze for later.

  1. Coat flank steak pieces in cornstarch.
  2. Add remainder of ingredients to crockpot and stir well to combine.
  3. Place flank steak into the crockpot and cook on high for 2-3 hours or on low for 4-5 hours.
  4. Serve over cooked rice.

Nutrition Facts

Servings Per Recipe
4 Servings
Serving Size
about 6 oz beef & 1 cup rice
Amount Per Serving
Calories
900
Total Fat
20g
Saturated Fat
6g
Trans Fat
0g
Cholesterol
111mg
Sodium
2458mg
Total Carbohydrates
129g
Fiber
2g
Sugar
38g
Protein
47g
WW Freestyle
29

174 Comments

Join the discussion
  1. What would you suggest as the cooking time FROM frozen? I like this recipe, but it seems a little impractical to have the pot cook for only 5 hours max. Any thoughts?

    1. This recipe is awesome!!
      In the crock pot, it only took about 2 hours on high for 1 1/2 lbs of flank steak.
      I actually made another recipe using the sauce recipe (only half of the amount) to make stir fried chicken in my wok. I sliced and dredged the chicken just like you would the beef, I mixed the ingredients to make the sauce in my wok on med-high and then I put the chicken in and cooked on high for about 5 minutes. I mixed in some fresh broccoli, carrots and pea pods that I had pre-steamed in the microwave. Serve over rice, or in lettuce wraps. My family loved it. I don’t care for ginger, so I left that out of both recipes.

  2. This looks delicious! Just to clarify, you coat the raw meat and then just place it on top of the rest of the (stirred up) ingredients, but don’t stir it all together right?

  3. Hi, would it hurt this to cook it longer?
    My crockpot as set settings (Low – 8 and 10 hours) and High (4 and 6 hours) then moves to warm.
    If I wasn’t home, I’d have to cook it on high 4 hours and it warm a big chunk of the day or cook 8 hours on low.
    Would either work for this and which would be better?
    Thanks!

    1. No, April, I don’t think it would hurt at all to cook it longer. I’d probably cook it on low for the longer amount of time.

  4. Can dried ginger be substituted for fresh without it taking too much away from the dish? I dont use fresh ginger and for such a small amount it seems like a waste of $ to go buy it…

    1. Molly – I frequently use prepared ginger in a tube from the grocery store. It’s a ginger paste and, in my store, you can find it in the refrigerated part of the produce section. Hope that helps!

      1. Fresh ginger freezes WONDERFULLY! I simply peel the ginger and wrap it in plastic wrap. I then put the wrapped hunks (as it inevitably breaks during peeling) into a plastic bag in the freezer. When you need to use it there’s no need to thaw. Simply grate the ginger with a fine grater and use just like you would fresh. The flavor is amazing and it’s easy to keep “fresh” ginger on hand all the time. (Besides, fresh ginger is so cheap for the flavor bang you get.)

    2. FYI, fresh ginger is super cheap. i use what the recipe calls for and throw the rest of the root in the freezer for next time! so much more tasty than ground ginger 🙂

    3. I am confused by all the talk of Ginger? There is no ginger in this recipe, unless it has been modified since it was originally posted?

      1. I was just struggling with the same thing! I made this today and it is way to sweet for me!! Maybe adding ginger and decreasing the brown sugar will help? And maybe adding some spice like siracha?

        1. Adding ginger makes no difference in the sweetness. If it’s too sweet reduce the sugar..

    4. Here’s a great tip for always having that fresh ginger taste on hand because quite frankly dried ginger doesn’t taste like fresh. Buy a nice sized hand of fresh ginger and freeze it whole. When you need ginger break off a piece right when you need it and use it right away. Don’t let it thaw. It’s gets soft. It is easily grated when it is frozen. Be sure to put the rest of the unused ginger back in the freezer right away. It’s good for a month or two like this. I don’t wrap mine or put it in a bag. It’s fine leaving it in the door of the freezer where it’s easy to find when you need it.

  5. Does the green onion go into the crock pot or just sprinkled on top when serving? The photo does not look like onions cooked in a slow cooker for 4 hours. Thanks.

    1. The green onions are cooked in the crock pot, and I cut up a couple of extra to sprinkle on top for added color and flavor.

  6. Made this today, it was good, but a little sweet to me. I might try and add some spice and Chinese peppers next time 🙂

  7. Can you make this without a crock pot? You have some great meals here but I don’t have a crock pot and I don’t want to shell out for one

    1. Hi Rachel, yes, I think you could make this without a crock pot. I think I’d brown the meat in a Dutch oven, prepare the rest as directed, maybe decreasing the liquid a bit. I’d bring it to a boil and cook it the rest of the way in the oven. It will need to cook a while so that the meat becomes tender.

    2. You can get a perfectly fine crackpot for $20 or less at Walmart. They aren’t that expensive, and we use ours all the time.

  8. I made this last weekend and it turned out incredible! My boyfriend and I love PF Chang’s Mongolian Beef, but this is better! It was super easy to make. The only thing I changed is that I used the low sodium soy sauce. We’ve got to watch out salt intake! This will definitely be made again and again and again…

  9. Is there a cut of beef besides Flank Steak that would work and taste as well? Where I live Flank steak is hard to find and expensive when you do.

    1. I have made this and I think that sirloin steak would be just fine for this. Maybe a flat iron steak if you can find that but that is rare too. Hope that helps.

  10. I decided to use chuck steak and chuck roast, as it is less expensive and happened to be on sale when I made this. To get the “poundage” that I needed, I got one small roast and one small steak and just sliced it into small fajita pieces. It was awesome! My husband and kids loved it : )

  11. I made this for dinner last night and served it with garlic mashed potato. My family really liked it. Husband thought it was too sweet for him so I’ll probably cut back on the sugar next time. Otherwise everyone else enjoyed it including my 22 month old grandaughter.

  12. I have this in the crock pot now and it smells amazing! Just make sure you don’t overcoat the meat in cornstarch though. My hubby was helping me this morning and I asked him to toss the meat in cornstarch while I did the rest of the prep and he went a little overboard. We have a very gelatinous sauce now. Still tasty, but it doesn’t look so good.

    1. Would flour work just as well? I’ve used flour to coat meat before I brown it for beef/chicken stew and that’s worked. Maybe the flour would keep it from getting quite so gelaninous?

      1. S/N do not use flour. I did, its 2 hours into cooking time and I’ve had to add extra water. It was turning into bread :/ I am in no way an expert but I wish I wouldn’t have substituted that one ingredient. I also used stew meat bc it was on sale. It smells AMAZING but looks like poultry gravy over beef tips.

  13. Made this for dinner last night. Holy sodium, Batman! Next time I’ll use low sodium soy sauce because that’s all that I could taste & the kids refused to eat anymore after the first bite.

    1. I’m sorry that was your experience, Angie. I don’t remember it being overly salty, but I always buy low-sodium soy sauce as a rule. I hope you try it again and love it!

      1. I plan on giving it another try because, despite the saltiness, I can tell that it will taste great with low sodium soy. Just wanted to give everyone a heads up who, like me, have regular soy.

  14. Sorry…Im a little confused. I want to make this to freeze. so do i cook it in crockpot first then freeze then thaw and cook in crock pot again??? Forgive me…Im a newby.

  15. made this tonight – big hit! I added some sliced red peppers in addition to the carrots – served over brown rice & broccoli. I might add some siracha or red pepper flakes next time, thought it needed a kick, but delicious as is!

  16. Thanks for posting this, we made it tonight. YUM! But next time i may add some red pepper and less brown sugar, only because we prefer more spice than sweet! Thanks again 🙂

  17. This was WONDERFUL!! I only had 5 ounces of soy sauce, so I did the same amount of water. I added some thinly-sliced sweet red pepper during the last hour of cooking and it was wonderful. I will be adding this to our rotation!!

  18. Just to clarify, the 1/4 cornstarch is only for tossing the beef? Or is it 1/4 c cornstarch in the sauce (and as required to coat the beef)?
    Thanks!

  19. Delicious and so easy to prepare!! The only change I made was to cut the sugar back from 3/4 cup to 1/4 cup because 3/4 seemed excessive for a recipe that only has four servings. Next time I will probably add more carrots and maybe some sliced red pepper as some previous posters suggested.

  20. It was FANTASTIC!!! Made half the recipe, added a little Hoisin Sauce then froze immediately. When I jotted down the cooking time on the freezer Ziploc bag, I forgot to reduce the time by half. Oops. Although the meat was a little overcooked, it was devoured within minutes. Definitely will make again, though next time I’ll add some julienne carrots, red pepper strips and broccoli florets during the last hour or so.

    1. Soy sauce can be purchased as Gluten free. There are a few brands out there that are certified GF. San J is one brand that is GF.

  21. Trying this tomorrow for dinner. It looks so good. Can’t wait I will let you know the outcome. So far I have tried lots of your recipes they were all great and my husband said they were keepers. Thank you thank you.

  22. Good food. 🙂 I made one for tonight and one to freeze. The one I made today I put too much cornstarch on the beef…my bad. No one noticed except me. I used my usual low-sodium soy sauce so the seasoning was appropriate. Cooking time on low could easily be reduced an hour… Enjoy!

  23. Just made this tonight; super easy, so much flavor! Roommates had already eaten out but just had to dig in once they smelled the deliciousness. So going into the keeper list. Thanks so much!

  24. this dish is amazing! we add more shredded carrots than what is called for and also add broccoli to the mix to round out the meal. definitely a meal the whole family enjoyed and asked for more!

    1. You certainly could. You may need to cut into smaller chunks or increase cooking time. Let us know how it turns out!

  25. I added fresh brocolli when I started it… it came out perfect, so no need to dirty an additional dish. Next time (because according to my husband there will DEFINATELY be a next time) I think I’ll add peppers and brocolli (I had planned to add peppers the first time but forgot to start the crockpot that morning so it became just steak and peppers stirfry lol

    1. I add a bag of the prepared broccoli slaw instead of just shredded carrots. The slaw mix has broccoli, carrots & cabbage. I also cook it all the same day and then freeze it in single portion bags with pre-cooked to have for lunch at work.

    2. I tried the broccoli at the start (4-5 hours at low) and it was terrible. Looked like it was gonna be fine and I even checked it by poking the stalk with the point of a knife; stalk had acceptable crunch but florets were self-destructing mush. If I try this again (with much more spices etc. for flavor; is was fairly tasteless overall) I would take AmyS’s tip above: add the broccoli an hour or so before serving.

  26. I am going to try this but rather than freezing, I intend to can it. .Plan to add extra green onions before serving, maybe green pepper slices too. Will try with beef and chicken. Wonder if pork would be good. I understand that your focus is freezer but I love canning. And many of your recipes sound like I can can as well as freeze. Obviously not canning the rice. Have you ever canned any of your recipes?

    1. Sharon – please let us know how it turns out canning it. I have never canned a meal like this before, so I am certainly curious.

  27. I made the Mongolian Beef exactly as you wrote it. I even shook off the extra corn starch from the beef. This meal was not very good. It was gummy and worse than that, it was tasteless. Sorry, not for me or my family. We threw the entire meal out asap.

    1. I agree; I had high hopes but it had very little flavor, even with some added chili paste. I also added fresh broccoli at the start (per Sara’s tip) and it was far from perfect: the florets were mush while the stalks still had acceptable crunch. Red pepper matchsticks laid on top fared much better though. The cornstarch is just the right amount to create the saucy consistency but texture throughout is far too mushy (I used chuck in lieu of flank so I can’t fault Heather’s recipe for that mushy element); I can’t even imagine how much worse this would be frozen and reheated.

      1. What recipe were you following? No peppers in the original… But then you altered the original and complain it was horrible… Try sticking to the posted recipe and not other posters suggestions if you want to complain

  28. I made this for the first time this week. I did not use the flank steak because there was a better cut that was on sale already sliced for stir fry. The recipe was super easy to assemble. Sadly, my crockpot gave out on me as soon as I turned it on. No worries though….2 hours in the oven (in the pot portion of the crockpot) covered with foil at 300 degrees and it was like butter. The meat just melted in our mouth. If you have a chance to try sirloin I recommend it. Delicious!!!!! Flank steak can get chewy
    especially if you try to cook it on high for a shorter time. This recipe was a hit!!!!!

  29. This looks so good! I have some that I just made and the freezer for a later date. I’m just a bit worried I fixed it wrong. To confirm, when freezing does the meat go in with the liquid?

  30. Ohhhh made this tonight! Delish! I played rice then broccoli and then the beef over the top. Oh my goodness! Even my 4 year old enjoyed the beef and she is not a “sauce” kind of girl!

  31. Just wanted to add for anyone concerned about sodium, try Liquid Aminos. You can find it at Whole Foods. It’s a little more expensive than regular soy sauce, it tastes the same, only much better for you.
    Also, I just finished making this for the first time and there is NO WAY this serves 4. Maybe it’s the fact that I have 3 boys in my house, but this is definitely not enough. I’ve got plenty of veggies to add in.

    1. Great suggestion on the Aminos, Sara. Serving sizes do tend to vary from family to family depending on what works best for them. There are some nights my little guy ends up eating more than I do, which has definitely made for some dinner prep adjustments along the way. 😉

  32. Question about cooking after freezing….do you put it in the crock pot frozen or do you thaw it the night before? Thanks in advance.

    1. My husband also likes this spicy. I put sriracha sauce in the crock pot with it or even chili powder if I don’t have the sauce on hand. Or I have also put one finely chopped jalepeno in, and he has liked it every way I’ve tried.

  33. Would pre-packaged stir fry meat work for this? I am hoping because I have some at home. I am hoping since it is a crockpot recipe that it will get tender & not be as chewy as stir fry meat can get.

    1. Absolutely, Leslie! You’re right that since the meat is hanging out in the slow cooker it should get nice and tender. Great idea to use what you already have at home!

      1. Do you think I should do the 4-5 hrs on low or extend that at all to make sure it gets tender (stir fry meat to me is usually chewier).

        1. I think you could start with 4-5 and then extend it based on your preference. This is one of those recipes that cooking longer will only serve to further braise and tenderize the meat- “low and slow” as they say!

  34. Why don’t you use Hoisin sauce? That’s the original sauce for Mongolian beef and what makes it taste so good. You could use some and thin it with a little water or sub some with water for some of the soy sauce and cut down on sugar since it’s sweet.

  35. This was horrible. WAY to much soy sauce. Very salty. I felt my arteries hardening as I was eating it. I recommend reducing the soy sauce by at least half. It also needs more veggies. Maybe add broccoli the last half hour and bigger pieces of carrot. As the carrot got absorbed during cooking process.

  36. Can I add broccoli and/or rice into the crock pot along with all the other ingredients? Or should it be made separately? thanks!!

    1. Michael, That’s a good question! Yes, a round top roast should be okay as long as it is sliced into strips. If you try it be sure to let us know how it turns out.

    1. Sorry, this recipe didn’t turn out for you! You could always add a little more cornstarch to thicken it up! Hope that helps – we’d love to hear how it turns out next time!

  37. Do you know the calories/nutrition info?
    We love Mongolian beef in the skillet and looking forward to trying in the pot

    1. Kent, we don’t usually have nutrition info listed for recipes except those in the diet menu and paleo menu. If you like, you could use a site like my fitness pal to input the recipe and get nutrition info!

  38. Freeze for later never happens. This dish is eaten at a meal and there might be a little leftover for lunch the next day. It is sooooo delicious.
    The third time I made it I added red peppers, the carrots, and a couple of other vegetables that I can’t remember right now as this was made about three weeks ago. We sometimes lay it over vermicelli noodles, pasta noodles, rice, or nests. We also use moose or venison stew meat that I slice up thinly. Beyond delicious! And so tender!

    1. Oh Vicki we are so glad this is such a hit with your family! The main reason to freeze it for later would be to have it at the ready on a regular basis! Thanks again for the feedback!

  39. I make Mongolian beef at least 2 times or more a month The grandkids love it and request it often I add red and green peppers to it so yummy

  40. This recipe is ridiculously delicious!! I make a quadruple batch (cooked for 4hrs), then freeze the leftovers in individual servings. Microwave when you want to eat again and you would never know it had been frozen 🙂

  41. Hi,
    I found an adaption of this recipe while scrolling Facebook. As I worked my way through the comments, one person wrote:

    “I don’t understand putting cornstarch on the meat if you’re just putting it into liquid and it gets taken off? What does this do? Besides help to thicken the sauce… which could be done by simply adding it right into the pot.”

    I’m curious about this as well. I did some research and learned that the cornstarch is tradition for Chinese cooking as it helps seal in moisture and it also veletizes the meat. However, would it fall off the meat once you place it in the liquid, then stir?

    1. Hi Diane! Thank you for your question. Let’s see if we can clarify. Yes, the cornstarch may indeed “fall off” the meat, but it is intended to tenderize the meat as well as thicken the liquid. Does that help answer your question? We are always here and happy to help! ?

  42. Hi, I was just reading through the ingredients for this recipe and I was wondering if cornflour is the same as cornstarch? If so would I use 1/4 cup or will I have to alter this.. Sorry I hope this doesn’t sound like a silly question but I am in Australia and we don’t have cornstarch in our supermarkets.

    1. It is our understanding that they are the same thing, so you should use the same amount called for in the recipe.

  43. After reading all the comments I used- 1/2 c water, 1/4 c. Soy sauce, 1/4 c. brown sugar, 1/2 t. Ginger powder, 1 t. Garlic powder and 1/2 t red pepper flakes. Didn’t put the broccoli and carrots in with it. I steamed it on the side. I used corn starch at the end to thicken the sauce. Will defiantly make this again.

  44. I would like to add broccoli to this but I’m not sure when to put it in the crockpot. Any suggestions please!

    1. We haven’t tested adding broccoli, so we can’t say for sure, but you might try adding it 20-30 minutes before the end of your cooking time. Alternatively, you could steam the broccoli on the side and add it at the end. If you try it in the crock pot, please let us know how it turns out!

  45. I love my slo cooker and intend to try this but have one thought . I am thinking of searing the beef quickly first to seal in the beef juices and flavor besides adding to appearance for serving.

  46. Thanks, this is a great recipe! I used almost 2 lbs of flank steak and increased the other ingredients to match. I also put the flank steak in the freezer for a time so it would slice thinly more easily. Additionally, I added 1 white onion cut in chunks, and two bell peppers cut in 3/4 inch squares. It was done in 2 hours on high, and the taste is great. My son said it was Awesome. I would like the vegetables to be a little crisper though, so next time I will add them one hour into the cook.
    The portion my son had was frozen, so the taste and texture held up well.

    1. Awesome Jim, so glad you liked this recipe. Thank you for sharing your adaptions and feedback! Happy Cooking.

  47. I found this recipe a few years ago & have made it many times, to the enjoyment of everyone. We buy a 2-4 lb. Angus Chuck roast (buying & freezing several when on sale at Sam’s or Kroger), which I cut up myself. I add a bit of sesame oil to the sauce, which I make in a separate bowl from the meat so that I can adjust the sugar, garlic, ginger & soy. I cut up a whole, small white onion & lay it on the bottom of our original 7 quart Crockpot brand slow cooker. I put the cornstarch coated beef on top of the onions & pour the sauce over it all, stirring lightly to combine. At the last 30 minutes of cooking, I add a cup of shredded carrots & raw broccoli, so it becomes Mongolian Broccoli Beef. Delicious!

    1. The recipe will definitely work with another cut of beef. If the pieces of meat are similar size and thickness, the cooking time should be roughly the same.