Slow Cooker Pepper Steak
223 Comments Apr 23, 2024
Updated Jun 23, 2024
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Pepper steak is a Chinese-inspired meal with plenty of sauce, bell peppers, and onions. This is a stir-fry-style meal but made in the slow cooker! Wonderful served over rice and has plenty of sauce (or gravy) to go around.
If you like Chinese-flavored meals, try my Slow Cooker Chicken and Broccoli and Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken.
Table of Contents
Why this pepper steak recipe works
This recipe is easy but has so much flavor and tastes like a restaurant-style meal but made in your own kitchen. The sauce has quite a few ingredients, but all are pantry staples and easy to assemble.
The slow cooking tenderizes the beef way more than cooking on the stovetop, and the sauce marries together during the long cooking time. We also like to make slow cooker swiss steak, slow cooker flank steak, or slow cooker beef and broccoli.
Recipe Ingredients
- Beef – cut top sirloin or round steaks into 1/2 inch strips (some stores carry this already done for you and call it stir fry beef). Flank steak works but the beef will have a more stringy texture. We also love to make Slow Cooker London Broil!
- Bell peppers – one red and one green
- White onion – sliced, though you can mince it if you have guests who don’t like big chunks of onions.
- Water and beef bouillon cubes – mix hot water and bouillon cubes to start the base of the sauce.
- Brown sugar – honey or white sugar works, too.
- Soy sauce – I use standard soy sauce in this recipe, not low sodium. Note that there is no table salt in this recipe so using regular soy sauce is important.
- Worcestershire sauce – adds a touch of tang and layer of flavor to the sauce.
- Cornstarch – this helps make the sauce thick and velvety.
- Seasonings – ground ginger, garlic powder, black pepper and brown sugar
- Red pepper flakes – This is optional if you like a spicy dish. (Find the full recipe in the recipe card below the photos).
Step-by-Step Directions
Step One – In a small bowl, add the water and beef bouillon cubes. Microwave until hot, about 30 seconds.
Step Two – Dissolve the beef bouillon into the water, do this by squishing the cubes with the back of a spoon.
Step Three – Add the soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, seasonings, and cornstarch. (Add red pepper flakes if you want your sauce spicy).
Step Four – Whisk these ingredients until smooth. This may not seem like a lot of sauce, but the beef, onion, and peppers will create more sauce while cooking.
Step Five – Add the sauce mixture to the slow cooker.
Step Six – Add the beef strips on top of the sauce.
Step Seven – Next, add the onions.
Step Eight – Then add the bell pepper strips.
How to Serve
So many different ways to serve pepper steak. Choose what your family enjoys most.
- White rice is the perfect side dish. It soaks up the flavors of the sauce and fills the entire family. You can also use brown rice.
- Spaghetti noodles or egg noodles
- Steamed veggies such as broccoli or green beans.
- Quinoa is a healthy option!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, add the raw beef, onion, and peppers to a freezer ziplock bag. Mix up the sauce mixture, though let it cool before adding to the bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge when ready to use, then add contents to the slow cooker and cook.
You can add 1 cup of sliced mushrooms to pepper steak, though the sauce may be a little watery due to the mushrooms’ moisture content.
You can if you are in a pinch. Though I use bouillon cubes and a small amount of water, so the sauce is potent. The meat and vegetables will let off their own moisture and dilute the concentrated sauce.
To store pepper steak, add to Tupperware and refrigerate for up to 3 days. To freeze this crockpot pepper steak recipe, add to freezer Ziplock bags and squeeze out any excess air. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Other great recipes like this one:
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Slow Cooker Pepper Steak
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. beef strips, Look for beef cut into strips already or buy top sirloin and cut into 1/2 inch strips (round steak works well too).
- 1 green bell pepper, sliced thick
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced thick
- 1 white onion, sliced
For the sauce:
- ½ cup water,
- 2 beef bouillon cubes
- 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ tsp. ground ginger
- ¼ tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. black pepper
- 2 tsp. brown sugar, honey or white sugar work too
- 1 Tbsp. cornstarch
- ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes, (optional)
Instructions
- In a small microwavable bowl add the water and the beef bouillon cubes. Place in the microwave for 30 seconds, mix until dissolved. I use the back of a spoon or the tip of a whisk to break up the bouillon cubes. (If you don't have a microwave, boil your water on the stove-top).
- Add the soy sauce, Worchestershire sauce, ginger, garlic powder, pepper, brown sugar and cornstarch to the bowl with the water and bouillon. Whisk until smooth. (Add the red pepper flakes if you desire). Pour this mixture into the slow cooker.
- Add the beef, bell peppers and onions onto the sauce in the slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 5 hours.
How to Video
Sarah’s Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
How would I alter the recipe and cook time if I used a bag of frozen peppers and onions?
It would be the same. They thaw quickly.
My family likes a lot of sauce/gravy. Can I use the same amount of ingredients ( meat, onion, peppers) but double the sauce ingredients?
Yeah you can, though this does have quite a bit of sauce.
It was alright.
Having the amounts of ingredients up front when be nice. Not hunting around and guessing
The full recipe is in the recipe card which you can jump to (with the button on top). It has a check list you can check off and a print button.
What temperature and how long for pepper steak in crockpot please
The recipe and time is in the recipe card.
Wow, I just prepared this in my slow cooker….. this is amazing. Took every bit of 3 hrs, just waiting to eat supper and fix the rice to bed it on
I love it. The kids love it. Super easy and tasty, I also have tried less meat with more veggies (added mushroom and potato) and it was still ssooo tasty.. the sauce gets absorbed by the rice and mash and the kids always lick the plate clean
This definitely sounds delicious. I was wondering how much a serving size is to get the calories stated in the nutritional facts. I will calculate the rice calories and add to the beef.
I don’t have the information I apologize.
We love this recipe and make it often! I do use a low sodium soy sauce because that’s always what we have on hand, and I add 1/2 teaspoon of salt. I also sauté mushrooms with butter, garlic and onion powder (my husband dislikes mushrooms) and eat on top of this! We serve over rice. So so good!
Yes , I am enjoying all the recipes. Can’t wait to try the Pepper steak.