Slow Cooker Sesame Beef

Slow Cooker Sesame Beef starts by tossing a few simple ingredients like soy sauce, sesame oil, and fresh ginger into your slow cooker. Let it simmer all day, and you'll end up with melt-in-your-mouth beef packed with flavor.

I love Asian takeout as much as the next person, but sometimes, I want something lighter that still packs a flavorful punch. That's why I love this crockpot Sesame Beef! It infuses lean beef with a flavorful, sweet, and savory sauce, creating the perfect base to add to your favorite meals.

This dish is perfect for busy weeknights or when you just want something hearty with minimal effort. Serve it over rice, noodles, or with your favorite veggies for a dinner everyone will devour!

Beef not your thing? Try this Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken or Slow Cooker Korean Chicken!

Before You Get Started

Here are a few notes to keep in mind before you start this recipe:

• Beef: I use a super lean top round roast for this recipe, but it works great with almost any cut of beef you can shred. If you want extra flavor, I suggest using a fattier cut like chuck roast for more flavor!
• Let it rest: Once shredded, make sure to let the beef sit in the sauce to soak up all the flavor. This is where the beef really soaks up the sauce. 
  Cook on low: Cooking on the low setting ensures the beef becomes melt-in-your-mouth tender. Cooking it too fast can make it tough. If you are pressed for time, use the Instant Pot instructions.

What You Need to Make It

Here's a quick breakdown of what you'll need for this recipe:

• Top round beef roast: I like using top-round roast because it's extra lean, but you can use any other type of beef you like, including chuck roast, short rib, brisket, or beed stew meat. 
• Sauce: To make this delicious sesame sauce, use a mixture of soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, fresh ginger, garlic, and onion. For a gluten-free sauce, swap in coconut aminos or tamari. You can also swap honey, maple syrup, or agave if you want to skip refined sugars. 
• Sesame seeds: Sesame seeds add texture and crunch to the shredded beef. Swap in cashews or sliced almonds if you prefer. 
• Beef broth: Broth helps to cook the beef and add flavor. If you don't love the beefy flavor of beef broth, swap in chicken or vegetables broth. 

How to Make Sesame Beef in the Crock Pot

The slow cooker practically does all the work for this recipe!

Step One: Make the Sauce

Whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, onion, and some sesame seeds with beef broth to create a flavorful base. Give the sauce a taste and adjust the flavor if needed. Make it sweeter with extra sugar, tangier with extra rice vinegar, or add some extra garlic or ginger. 

Step Two: Prep the Slow Cooker

Place the beef in your slow cooker and pour the sauce mixture over it, making sure it's fully coated. Usually, I keep the beef whole, but feel free to cut it into large chunks if you prefer.  For even more flavor, consider searing the beef before adding it to the slow cooker. 

Step Three: Cook and Shred

Cook the beef until it's tender enough to shred easily with forks or tongs. Let it soak in the sauce for extra flavor.

Step Four: Garnish and Serve

Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve it up warm. It's also delicious with some green onions, cilantro, or pickled red onions. Simple and delicious!

Instant Pot Option

Add the beef to the Instant Pot with the sauce. Cover and set the Manual timer to 45 minutes. Once it is cooked you can manually release or naturally release the steam.

Use two forks to shred the beef. If the sauce is liquidy, combine the cornstarch with 1-2 tablespoons of cold water until it dissolves. Add it to the pot along with the beef and turn the Instant Pot to Saute.

Let the sauce come to a simmer and then turn off the heat. Let the meat rest for a few minutes so the sauce can thicken.

Can I turn this into a Sesame Beef Stir Fry?

If you prefer a quick and easy stir-fry to slow cooking, you can use the same sauce for your recipe. However, you will need to select a cut of beef that cooks much more quickly like lean sirloin or flank steak. Slice the steak nice and thin and then marinate in the sauce.

Remove from the sauce, letting all the excess drip off. Cook in a very hot pan until the beef is just cooked through. Reduce the sauce from marinated in a saucepan until it is thick.

Ideas for Serving Sesame Beef

Here are some fun ways to serve this recipe:

• Rice: I like to serve Sesame Beef over rice. White, brown, cauliflower, whatever rice you choose, it'll be delicious.
• Taco: If you read the word "taco" and now that's all you can think about, then by all means, add this Slow Cooker Sesame Beef to a taco. I like mine in a corn taco, but flour or low-carb tortillas or shells work well, too.
• Lettuce wraps: Lettuce wraps make a great no-carb option. I like to put the shredded beef into the lettuce leaf and top it like I would a taco — with all the fixings. You can also serve it with Cauliflower Rice or one of these Veggie Stir Fry Recipes
• Snap peas: Snap peas and brown rice are delicious together. If you've never had cooked snap peas, you are totally missing out!
• Slaw: Asian Peanut Slaw is a great base for slow-cooked shredded Asian beef.

Tips & Tricks for Making Slow Cooker Sesame Beef

Use these tips and tricks to make the best sesame beef!

• Make-ahead: You can make the sesame sauce up to two days ahead of time and store it in a Mason jar in the fridge. That way, all you have to do is add your beef and pour over the sauce the morning you want to make this dish in the slow cooker. Or, for a faster meal, add the sauce to ground beef and cook it in a skillet, like in this ground beef bulgogi recipe.
• Soak: Don't skip the extra 30 minutes of the shredded beef cooking in the sauces. This allows the sauce to cook down some and really soak into the beef now that you've pulled it apart.
• Shred: You can also shred this beef with tongs if you prefer over forks.
• Warm: It will keep warm if you put it in the "warm" setting without the sauce getting too thick.

Variations and Substitutions

Here are some variations and substitutions to make this recipe your own:

• Spicy kick: Add chili flakes, Sriracha, or diced jalapeños to the sauce for a spicier version.
• Add more veggies: Toss in carrots, broccoli, or bell peppers during the last hour of cooking for added texture and nutrition.
• Gluten-free: Swap the soy sauce for tamari or coconut aminos.
• Sweet twist: Add a drizzle of honey or a splash of pineapple juice for a hint of sweetness.
• Garlic: Substitute minced garlic for garlic cloves if you don't have fresh or you don't have time to mince the garlic yourself.
• Ginger: If you don't have fresh ginger, you can substitute 1 tbsp of powdered ginger instead.
• Tomato paste: I prefer using tomato paste because it will make your sauce thick. But ketchup works in a pinch. Make sure you're using just a tablespoon and not too much ketchup so the sauce doesn't get too watery and runny.
• Protein: If you don't have a top-round roast, you can substitute a chuck roast or flank steak.