Instant Pot Mongolian Beef with Fried Rice

Mongolian beef is one of those dishes that always sounds like a project — the kind of thing you’d order at a restaurant because making it at home seems like too much effort. This Instant Pot version flips that completely.

You get tender flank steak coated in a savory-sweet garlic-ginger sauce, and the whole thing comes together in under 30 minutes start to finish. Serve it over fried rice and it’s a full dinner with almost no fuss.

The pressure cooker does the heavy lifting here. Flank steak — which can turn tough and chewy if you’re not careful — comes out genuinely tender after just 12 minutes at high pressure.

The sauce reduces down to a glossy, clingy consistency once you hit it with a quick cornstarch slurry at the end. It’s the kind of weeknight dinner that tastes like you put in more effort than you actually did.

What Makes This Recipe Reliable

• Flank steak gets tender under pressure. This cut is lean and can be chewy on the stovetop if you rush it. The Instant Pot breaks it down without drying it out — 12 minutes high pressure is the sweet spot.
• The sauté step matters. Browning the beef before pressure cooking builds depth in the sauce. Don’t skip it, don’t rush it, and don’t crowd the pot or you’ll steam instead of sear.
• The cornstarch slurry at the end gives you control. The sauce comes out of the pressure cycle thin — that’s expected. The sauté finish lets you thicken it exactly to the consistency you want.
• Garlic and ginger do the real work. The sauce isn’t complicated, but the aromatics give it that restaurant-style flavor that makes people ask what’s in it.
• It scales easily. Two pounds of flank steak feeds four generously. Got six people? The sauce ratios hold up well if you bump the beef to 2.5 pounds.

What to Know Before You Start

A few things that will make your life easier before you turn on the Instant Pot:

Get your butcher to slice the beef. Flank steak cut against the grain into 1/4-inch strips is the goal.

If you do it at home, partially freezing the steak for 20–30 minutes first makes it much easier to get even, thin slices. If you ask the butcher counter at your grocery store, they’ll usually do it for free while you’re shopping.

Plan about 30 minutes total. The actual pressure cook time is 12 minutes, but you need to account for the sauté step (5–7 minutes to brown the beef in batches), the time for the pot to come to pressure (about 8–10 minutes with that amount of liquid and meat), and then the cornstarch finish at the end.

It’s not slow — just don’t expect it done in 15 minutes.

Use quick release. This recipe calls for quick pressure release, not natural release.

That’s intentional — the beef is already at the texture you want after 12 minutes, and natural release would continue cooking it. Grab a kitchen towel to redirect the steam away from your face and cabinets.

Have your cornstarch slurry ready. Mix the cornstarch and water before you even start cooking so it’s waiting for you at the thickening step.

It only takes about 2 minutes for the sauce to thicken once you add it, and you want to be stirring the whole time.

Ingredients

Here’s what you need and why each piece matters:

The Beef

Flank steak is the traditional choice for Mongolian beef, and it’s the right one for this recipe. It has great beefy flavor and, when sliced properly against the grain, becomes genuinely tender under pressure.

Two pounds is the target — it’s enough to fill the pot without crowding too much during the sauté step.

If you can’t find flank steak, flat iron or skirt steak are reasonable substitutes. Avoid using stew meat or chuck — the pressure time and sauce ratios are built around a leaner, faster-cooking cut.

The Sauce

Soy sauce — 1/4 cup gives you saltiness and umami without making the dish taste like you’re drinking out of the bottle. Use regular soy sauce (not low-sodium) for the best flavor balance with the brown sugar.

Beef broth — 3/4 cup is required for the Instant Pot to come to pressure. It also becomes part of the sauce, so it’s doing double duty.

Don’t swap this for water — you’ll lose flavor.

Dark brown sugar — 1/3 cup. This is what makes Mongolian beef Mongolian beef.

The sauce is supposed to have sweetness to it. If you prefer it less sweet, you can pull it back to 1/4 cup, but I’d try it as written first.

Dark brown sugar has more molasses than light, which gives the sauce a slightly richer, deeper flavor.

Fresh ginger — just 1/2 teaspoon minced, but it’s doing real work. If you only have ground ginger, use 1/4 teaspoon — it’s more concentrated.

Fresh is better here if you have it.

Garlic — 4 cloves, minced. You’ll sauté these directly in the pot after the beef is browned, which blooms the flavor before everything goes under pressure.

Vegetable oil — 2 tablespoons for the sauté step. Neutral oil is what you want here.

Olive oil works in a pinch but it’s not ideal.

To Finish

Cornstarch + water — 2 tablespoons cornstarch whisked with 3 tablespoons of cold water. This is your thickener.

The sauce comes out thin after pressure cooking, and this slurry pulls it together into that glossy, coat-the-beef consistency you want.

Green onions — 3 green onions sliced into 1-inch pieces, stirred in at the very end. They add color, a bit of mild onion bite, and they look good in the bowl.

How to Make Instant Pot Mongolian Beef

Step 1: Brown the Beef

Add the vegetable oil to the Instant Pot and select the Sauté function. Let the pot heat up — you’ll know it’s ready when the oil starts shimmering and you see a little movement in it.

Add the beef strips in batches. Do not crowd the pot.

If you pile all the meat in at once, the temperature drops and you end up steaming the beef instead of searing it — you’ll lose that caramelized exterior that adds depth to the finished dish. Work in two or three batches, giving each piece room to brown.

Sear for 1–2 minutes per side until browned, then transfer to a plate. It does not need to be fully cooked through at this stage.

Step 2: Sauté the Garlic

Once all the beef is off the plate, add the minced garlic directly to the pot (still on Sauté). Stir it around for about 1 minute — you just want it fragrant and lightly golden.

Don’t walk away here; garlic burns fast in a hot Instant Pot insert.

Step 3: Build the Sauce

Add the soy sauce, beef broth, brown sugar, and ginger directly to the pot. Stir everything together to combine, scraping up any browned bits stuck to the bottom — this is important both for flavor and for preventing a burn notice from the Instant Pot.

Return the browned beef and any juices that collected on the plate back into the pot. Give it a stir.

Step 4: Pressure Cook

Lock the lid, make sure the valve is set to Sealing, and select High Pressure. Set the timer for 12 minutes.

The pot will take about 8–10 minutes to come up to pressure before the countdown begins. Once it does, leave it alone.

When the 12 minutes are up and you hear the beep, turn the pot off and carefully switch the valve to Venting for a quick pressure release.

The steam that comes out is extremely hot. Use a kitchen towel draped over the valve and aim the steam toward the back of your stove or toward the wall — not toward you, and not toward your cabinets above.

When the float valve drops, it’s safe to open the lid.

Step 5: Thicken the Sauce

The sauce will be thin when you open the lid — that’s normal. Turn the Instant Pot back to Sauté.

Whisk together the 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and 3 tablespoons of cold water in a small bowl until smooth. Pour the slurry into the pot while stirring the sauce constantly.

Keep stirring as it heats up — the sauce will thicken within 1–2 minutes once it gets back up to temperature. When it coats a spoon and looks glossy, you’re there.

Stir in the green onions and serve immediately.

What to Serve It With

Fried rice is the classic pairing and the one I always go back to. The sauce soaks right into the rice and every bite gets some of that soy-ginger flavor.

Steamed white rice works too if you want something simpler.

For vegetables on the side, steamed broccoli or snap peas are natural fits. You can also stir broccoli florets directly into the Instant Pot after pressure cooking — just add them during the sauté/thickening step and let them cook for 3–4 minutes until tender-crisp.

If you want to stretch the meal for more people, lo mein noodles work well instead of rice. Toss the cooked noodles in a bit of sesame oil before serving, then spoon the Mongolian beef and sauce over the top.

Helpful Tips

Don’t skip the browning step

It’s tempting to just throw everything in the pot and hit the pressure button, especially on a busy night. But the 5–7 minutes you spend browning the beef in batches is where you build actual flavor in this dish.

The Maillard reaction (the browning on the outside of the meat) creates a complexity that pressure cooking alone can’t replicate. It’s worth it.

Scrape the bottom before pressure cooking

After you add the liquid and stir, run a wooden spoon or silicone spatula along the bottom of the insert and make sure nothing is stuck. Stuck-on bits are the most common cause of a burn notice on the Instant Pot.

A quick 30-second scrape before you seal the lid prevents that headache.

Adjust sweetness before serving

After the sauce thickens, taste it. If it’s sweeter than you’d like, a small splash of rice vinegar (1/2 teaspoon) brings things back into balance without making it taste sour.

If you want it saltier, add a teaspoon of soy sauce rather than salt — it’ll blend in better.

Cut the beef thin and consistent

Strips that are noticeably thicker than 1/4 inch will take longer to reach the right texture. Thin, even strips cook evenly and absorb the sauce better.

If some of your strips are thicker, they’re not going to ruin the dish — just know the texture may vary a bit.

Variations and Substitutions

Make It Spicy

Add 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes to the sauce before pressure cooking, or stir in a teaspoon of chili garlic sauce (like sambal oelek) at the end. Either way, it adds heat without overwhelming the other flavors.

Lower the Sweetness

The recipe calls for 1/3 cup brown sugar, which puts it in the sweeter range for Mongolian beef. If you prefer a more savory-forward version, drop it to 3–4 tablespoons.

The sauce will still glaze the beef beautifully, just with less sweetness upfront.

Make It Gluten-Free

Swap the soy sauce for tamari or coconut aminos. Coconut aminos are slightly sweeter than soy sauce, so if you go that route you may want to pull the brown sugar back to 1/4 cup.

Add Vegetables

Broccoli, snap peas, and bell peppers all work well in this dish. Add them after pressure cooking during the sauté/thickening step — they only need 3–5 minutes to cook through.

Adding them before pressure cooking will turn them to mush.

Storage, Make-Ahead, and Leftovers

Refrigerator

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. The beef absorbs more sauce as it sits, which means it actually tastes even better the next day — the flavors have time to settle in.

Freezer

This dish freezes well. Let it cool completely, then transfer to freezer-safe containers or bags.

It’ll keep for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave.

The sauce may separate slightly after freezing — a quick stir while reheating brings it back together.

Reheating

Stovetop in a small saucepan over medium-low heat is the best method for keeping the sauce consistent. Microwave works too — cover the container loosely and heat in 60-second intervals, stirring between each one.

Make Ahead

You can prep the beef (slice and refrigerate) and mix the sauce ingredients (minus the cornstarch slurry) up to a day ahead. Everything stays in the fridge until you’re ready to cook.

It shaves a few minutes off the active prep time and makes weeknight cooking more manageable.

Recommended Tools

You don’t need much beyond the Instant Pot itself, but a few things make the process easier:

The Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1 is the model I’ve been using for years and it’s still the one I’d recommend for someone starting out. The 6-quart size handles this recipe without issue, and the 8-quart is worth it if you regularly cook for 6 or more people.

A silicone spatula is what I use to scrape the bottom of the insert after sautéing — it’s flexible enough to get into the edges and won’t scratch the pot. Small thing, but it prevents a lot of burn notices.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use a different cut of beef?

Yes. Skirt steak and flat iron steak are both solid substitutes.

They’re similar in fat content and texture to flank and respond well to the same cook time. Sirloin works in a pinch but tends to be a bit more variable — thinner pieces may turn out slightly softer than you want.

Avoid chuck or stew beef; those cuts need a longer pressure cook time and this recipe isn’t built for that.

My sauce came out too thin. What happened?

A few possible causes: the cornstarch slurry wasn’t mixed well enough before adding (unmixed lumps don’t thicken evenly), the Sauté setting wasn’t hot enough to activate the cornstarch fully, or you didn’t stir constantly during the thickening step. If the sauce is still thin after 2 minutes on Sauté, mix another teaspoon of cornstarch with a tablespoon of cold water and add it in.

Give it another minute of stirring and it should come together.

I got a burn notice. What do I do?

Turn off the pot, switch the valve to Venting to release any pressure, and carefully open the lid. The most common cause is browned bits stuck to the bottom that weren’t scraped up before pressure cooking.

Add a splash of broth (2–3 tablespoons), scrape the bottom thoroughly, seal the lid, and restart the cook. The dish will be fine — this is a preventable issue, not a ruined dinner.

Can I double the recipe?

Yes, but with limitations. If you’re using a 6-quart Instant Pot, doubling to 4 pounds of beef will push you close to the max fill line.

You can do it, but brown the beef in even more batches and be careful not to overfill. The cook time stays the same — 12 minutes at high pressure.

If you have an 8-quart, doubling is much more comfortable.

Can I make this without a pressure cooker?

You can make a stovetop version, but the texture of the beef will be different. Sear the beef in batches in a large skillet or wok over high heat, set aside, sauté the garlic, add the sauce ingredients, and return the beef.

Simmer covered over medium-low heat for about 15–20 minutes until the beef is tender. Thicken with the cornstarch slurry the same way.

It works, but flank steak on the stovetop can turn chewy if you’re not careful about heat and timing.

Is this recipe sweet? Can I adjust it?

Yes, Mongolian beef has a noticeable sweetness to it — that’s part of what makes it Mongolian beef. This recipe uses 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, which puts it in the moderately sweet range.

If you want less sweetness, dial it back to 3–4 tablespoons. If you want more of a savory, salty profile, add an extra tablespoon of soy sauce along with the reduction in sugar.

Taste after the sauce thickens and adjust from there — it’s easy to course-correct at the end.

More Instant Pot Recipes You’ll Want to Try

If this one worked for you, here are a few more that follow the same weeknight-friendly formula:

• Instant Pot Chicken and Rice — one pot, minimal cleanup, and the rice cooks right in the broth.
• Instant Pot Beef Stew — hearty, thick, and the pressure cooker gets the potatoes and carrots to the exact right texture.
• Instant Pot Orange Chicken — if the Mongolian beef sauce hit the sweet-savory note you were looking for, orange chicken is the next logical step.
• Instant Pot Fried Rice — make the fried rice in the same pot and you’ve got a fully homemade version of this meal.
• Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken — similar sauce profile to Mongolian beef but lighter, with chicken thighs that come out fall-apart tender.