Crock Pot Beef Broccoli

Who doesn't like a little Chinese food?  I know our family loves it!  My only wish is that we lived in a place like New York where they delivered!  I usually opt for ordering from the restaurant because after the few times I've tried at home, none were successful.  I couldn't get the flavor to be close to the real thing.  After seeing a crock pot beef broccoli recipe on Pinterest, I figured, why not give this version a try?

                                                                                        Source: bsrecipe.blogspot.com via G on Pinterest

That's the pin I pinned to my food board last week and that I attempted to make tonight.  The instructions are very easy and simple.  I will caution that if you don't want too much salt, use a soy sauce with lower sodium.  Here's the recipe from BS Recipes:

Ingredients
1 pound boneless beef chuck roast, sliced into thin strips
1 cup beef consomme
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons cooled sauce from the crock pot after being cooked
Fresh broccoli florets (as many as desired)
Hot cooked rice

Directions
1. Place beef in a crock pot.
2. In a small bowl, combine consomme, soy sauce, brown sugar, oil, and garlic. Pour over beef. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
3. In a cup, stir cornstarch and sauce form the crock pot until smooth. Add to crock pot. Stir well to combine. (If your sauce is not thickening, try bringing your sauce to a boil on the stove top with the corn starch mixture. Boil until your desired consistency is reached).
4. Add broccoli to the crock pot. Stir to combine.
5. Cover and cook an additional 30 minutes on high (the sauce has to boil for it to thicken).
6. Serve over hot cooked rice.

If you've never used beef consomme before, be prepared.  It's nothing scary or gross, but the scent is strong!  You'll be tempted to just use the entire can, but it is a little over 1 cup, maybe a cup and a few tablespoons worth.  When I was ready to set the crock pot, I set it for 7 hours, which made the beef so tender you don't need a knife to cut it into smaller pieces!!

                                          

The 7 hour time frame on low was perfect!  The beef was so tender that whenever I'd stir it around especially after adding the cornstarch and broccoli, some pieces would start to break apart!  Definitely a plus for the kids, meaning they wouldn't struggle trying to bite into the beef.  Before I did the cornstarch/broccoli steps, I did set my rice cooker so the rice would be done once the broccoli was done cooking.  :)

Verdict?  This recipe did yield a good amount of sauce!  Does it taste like actual beef broccoli, or maybe better as the original blogger posted?  To my family, not at all.  The soy sauce did make the sauce saltier than the original (which is why I suggested using a lower sodium soy sauce).  Don't get me wrong, it is a good dish, but since it tasted nothing like what you get from a Chinese restaurant.  I'll still be on the hunt for a good, ohmygod-didthiscomefromarestaurant type recipe!

Cheers!