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This ground beef and broccoli is a simple and cost-effective one-pan meal. It’s paleo, whole30, and AIP-friendly.

Ground beef and broccoli in a bowl

Beef and broccoli is a flavorful restaurant classic! It’s one of my favorite dishes to make at home, but buying sirloin or flank steak can get expensive. I love cooking with ground beef for simple and cost-effective cooking, so I decided to make a beef and broccoli copycat made with ground beef! Not only is it cheaper than buying steak, but it’s easier to cook, and comes together much more quickly than traditional beef and broccoli.

This ground beef and broccoli is the perfect one-pan weeknight meal! It’s gluten-free, soy-free, paleo, whole30, and AIP-friendly.

The Ingredients for Ground Beef & Broccoli

  • Ground beef. A cheaper and easier alternative to using steak!
  • Broccoli. I like to chop the broccoli into small florets for this recipe 
  • Coconut aminos. This is a soy sauce alternative that’s the base of the sauce.
  • Broth, coconut sugar, apple cider vinegar, ginger, and garlic. These are the rest of the ingredients for the sauce.

How to make Ground Beef & Broccoli

  1. Make the sauce: Whisk the coconut aminos, broth, apple cider vinegar, arrowroot, garlic powder, and ginger powder together and set aside.
  2. Cook the broccoli: Using a large pan, heat the avocado oil over medium heat. Add the broccoli and lightly season with salt and pepper. Saute for 5-6 minutes or until crisped to your liking. Set aside.
  3. Brown the beef: Add the ground beef to the pan and season with salt and pepper. Use a wooden spoon to crumble the beef and brown. Once browned, drain some of the excess fat.
  4. Combine & serve: Add the broccoli back to the pan and pour the coconut aminos mixture in. Stir for 1-2 minutes to allow the sauce to reduce.  Remove from heat and serve topped with green onion.

Can you use frozen broccoli to make this beef and broccoli?

You can, but you just want to be defrosted before you use it and to be careful of the excess water. It won’t be as crispy as fresh broccoli, but it’ll work!

Serving suggestions

This recipe is great with cauliflower rice, or regular rice if you can tolerate it! It’s also great with a side of vegetables like those in this recipe, or something like roasted bok choy. 

Can you meal prep this recipe ahead of time? How should you store it?

Yes! You can make it ahead of time and easily store it in the fridge in glass Tupperware.

Ground beef and broccoli in two bowls with chopsticks

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Ground Beef & Broccoli (Paleo, Whole30, AIP)

★★★★★

5 from 34 reviews
  • Author: Michelle
  • Total Time: 25 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x
  • Diet: Gluten Free
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Description

This ground beef and broccoli is a simple and cost-effective one-pan meal. It’s paleo, whole30, and AIP-friendly.

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1/2 cup coconut aminos
  • 1/3 cup beef broth (sub water)
  • 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp coconut sugar (omit for whole30)
  • 1 tbsp + 2 tsp arrowroot starch
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp ginger powder
  • 2 tbsp avocado oil
  • 2 cups broccoli florets
  • 3/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper (omit for AIP)
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 2 tbsp green onion, chopped

Instructions

  1. Whisk the coconut sugar, coconut aminos, broth, apple cider vinegar, arrowroot, garlic powder, and ginger powder together and set aside.
  2. Using a large pan, heat the avocado oil over medium heat. Add the broccoli and lightly season with salt and pepper. Saute for 5-6 minutes or until crisped to your liking. Set aside.
  3. Add the ground beef to the pan and season with salt and pepper. Use a wooden spoon to crumble the beef and brown. Once browned, drain some of the excess fat.
  4. Add the broccoli back to the pan and pour the coconut aminos mixture in. Stir for 1-2 minutes to allow the sauce to reduce.
  5. Remove from heat and serve topped with green onion.

Notes

All nutritional information are estimations and will vary. Estimations do not include optional ingredients.

  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 15
  • Category: Main Dishes
  • Method: Stove Top
  • Cuisine: Chinese Inspired

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 serving
  • Calories: 275
  • Fat: 10.6g
  • Carbohydrates: 17.6g
  • Fiber: 1.6g
  • Protein: 26.7g

Keywords: beef and broccoli, ground beef