I love these crispy chilli beef noodles for a quick, spicy dinner — strips of tender, slightly crispy steak tossed with stir-fried noodles and crunchy vegetables in a sticky, sweet and citrusy sauce.
I’m a big fan of beef stir-fries — they’re fast, satisfying and full of flavour.
There are many favourites that are close to this one, such as Chinese takeaway-style crispy chilli beef and crispy beef with broccoli, alongside classics like orange beef, beef chow fun, black pepper beef, Mongolian beef and beef in black bean sauce. I keep making them because they’re easy and popular with family and friends.
Table of Contents
- 📋 Ingredients
- 📺 Watch how to make it
- Pro Tip
- 🍽️ What to serve it with
- 🍲 More fantastic fakeaway recipes
- Crispy Chilli Beef Noodles Recipe
📋 Ingredients
- I prefer fresh medium egg noodles because they speed up cooking. If you use dried egg noodles, boil according to pack instructions, drain, rinse under cold water and toss with a little sesame oil to stop them sticking before using.
📺 Watch how to make it
Full recipe with detailed steps is available in the recipe card below.
- Coat and season the steak strips, then fry until lightly crisp.
- Stir-fry the vegetables with garlic and ginger.
- Make the sauce from lime juice, dark soy, sugar and chopped chilli, and reduce it briefly in the wok.
- Toss the noodles in the bubbling sauce so they absorb the flavour.
- Add the steak and vegetables back in with spring onions, toss until heated through, and serve.
Pro Tip
Use mild chillies such as Fresno or Serrano for gentle heat. For more spice, try Bird’s Eye chillies or add a teaspoon of dried chilli flakes.
I didn’t actually use the fiery-looking yellow chilli pictured (likely a habanero) — I’m not brave enough for habaneros!
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🍽️ What to serve it with
- Top with a homemade sweet chilli sauce for extra zing.
- Serve it as the main dish, or as part of a fakeaway spread with starters like sesame prawn toast, vegetable spring rolls or salt and pepper ribs.
🍲 More fantastic fakeaway recipes
Asian
Sesame Noodles
Curries
Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe
Asian
Orange Chicken Recipe
Asian
Special Fried Rice Masterclass
Asian
Pad Thai
Quick & Easy
Crispy Chilli Chicken with Broccoli
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Crispy Chilli Beef Noodles
Ingredients
Steak
- 400 g (14 oz) fresh (cooked) medium egg noodles (*see notes for using dried)
- 300 g (10.6 oz) sirloin steak, thinly sliced (freeze 10 minutes first for easier slicing)
- 2 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch in USA)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp neutral oil (avocado, rapeseed or vegetable)
Vegetables and Sauce
- 1 tbsp neutral oil
- 1 red bell pepper, deseeded and sliced
- 200 g (7 oz) broccoli, cut into small florets
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- 2 tsp minced ginger
- 90 ml (6 tbsp) fresh lime juice (approx. 3 limes)
- 90 ml (6 tbsp) dark soy sauce
- 6 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
- 1 red chilli, finely chopped (Fresno for mild heat or Bird’s Eye for hotter)
- 4 spring onions (scallions), chopped into 2 cm pieces
To Serve
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 1 tsp finely chopped fresh chillies
- 2 spring onions, finely chopped
Instructions
- Place the steak strips in a bowl and add the cornflour, salt and pepper. Toss until evenly coated.
- Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat. When hot, add the beef and fry until dark brown and lightly crispy, about 5 minutes. Move the beef only occasionally to retain crispiness.
- Remove the beef with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.
- Turn heat to medium, add 1 tbsp oil, then stir-fry the broccoli and red pepper for 2–3 minutes until tender-crisp.
- Add the garlic and ginger and fry for 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Remove the vegetables and set aside with the beef.
- In a bowl combine lime juice, dark soy sauce, sugar and chopped chilli, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
- Pour the sauce into the wok, increase the heat to high and bubble for 2–3 minutes until reduced by about one-third.
- Add the noodles and toss frequently until heated through, about 2–3 minutes.
- Return the cooked beef and vegetables to the wok with the spring onions. Heat for 2–3 minutes, tossing to prevent sticking.
- Serve immediately, topped with chilli flakes, extra chopped chillies and the remaining spring onions.
Notes
Using dried noodles?
You can substitute 400 g fresh egg noodles with 200 g dried medium Chinese egg (Lo Mein) noodles. Cook dried noodles according to the pack (usually 3–4 minutes), drain, rinse under cold water to stop cooking, then toss with a teaspoon of sesame oil to prevent sticking. Set aside until needed.
Why isn’t my beef extra crispy?
Coating the beef in cornflour and shallow frying gives a light, crisp coating. For a very craggy restaurant-style crisp you’d need a thicker coating (egg wash then a generous seasoned cornflour) and more oil — shallow frying in 1 cm of oil or deep frying gives the crispiest results.
Nutritional information is based on one serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is an approximation and may vary.
This post was first published in January 2018 and updated June 2024 with a video and a few recipe tweaks.
Some links in this post may be affiliate links — if you purchase through them I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Nutritional information is approximate. For more information see the site’s terms and conditions.