Weeknight dinners get a serious flavor upgrade with easy, homemade beef negimaki! We love to serve this over a bed of white or sushi rice with a sprinkling of sesame seeds. Roasted or blistered vegetables are the perfect simple side dish!
But first, what is negimaki? Negi means ‘scallions’ in Japanese, while maki means ‘roll’ — so beef negimaki is quite literally a beef and scallion roll! You’ll sometimes see negimaki on the menu of your favorite American Japanese restaurant, and for good reason. Negimaki offers great flavor (teriyaki sauce!), tender beef (cooked to a beautiful medium-rare), and a great bite from the green onions, which is a good contrast to the sweet sauce. It is so delicious!!
Best part? It’s really easy to make at home! Sliced skirt steak is thinly pounded out then rolled around blanched scallions. Seal tightly with kitchen twine or toothpicks, then sear on all sides until a crust forms on the outside. Don’t worry, the center remains a juicy medium-rare! Finish the whole thing with homemade teriyaki sauce, which thickens up a bit as it cooks down. And bonus? You can assemble the beef rolls ahead of time, then cook to order when ready. Entrée or appetizer, you’re going to love this negimaki recipe!
Ingredients For Beef Negimaki
- Skirt steak, flank steak, or thinly sliced rounds of a tender cut of beef (we see this more often as Asian markets versus traditional US markets — the former will carry a larger variety of different cuts and preparations of meat)
- Scallions, also known as green onions
- Kosher salt
- Rice flour, optional
- Sesame seeds, for serving
- Homemade teriyaki sauce, though yes, you can use store-bought! Ours is made in a small saucepan with sake, low-sodium soy sauce, and mirin (or rice vinegar).
You’ll also need a meat mallet, plastic wrap or parchment paper, and kitchen twine or toothpicks! Don’t forget a bowl of ice water for shocking the scallions after they quickly cook!
How To Make Negimaki
- Make the teriyaki sauce. If using homemade, combine ½ cup sake, ¼ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce, and ¼ cup mirin in a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce for 8-10 minutes to thicken. Set aside. Can use a store-bought marinade if you prefer!
- Blanch the scallions. Trim the ends off each scallion, then cut into pieces about 3″ long. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, then add Kosher salt. Add the scallions and cook for 30-45 seconds, or until just beginning to wilt. Submerge the scallions in an ice bath, then drain.
- Prepare the steak. Place steak in a freezer for 20 minutes to make it easier to slice. When ready, trim off excess fat, then slice with the grain into pieces that are about ½” thick.
- Pound the steak. Place three pieces of sliced beef on a piece of plastic wrap or parchment paper, leaving a few inches in between each. Top with another piece of plastic wrap or parchment, then use a meat mallet to pound into ⅛” thick slices. Set aside, then repeat with remaining steak.
- Assemble the maki rolls. Working on a cutting board, overlap three pieces of steak to form a rectangle. Season very lightly with Kosher salt, then place 3-4 pieces of blanched scallion along the short end. Roll the steak, then secure with either kitchen twine or toothpicks. Repeat with remaining steak and scallions.
- Coat with rice flour, optional. Place ¼ cup rice (or all-purpose) flour in a medium bowl. Toss each maki roll very lightly with rice flour, dusting off any excess.
- Cook the negimaki. Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add a neutral oil, then when hot, add negimaki beef rolls and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, about 8-9 minutes total. Beef rolls should be crispy on the outside, but medium-rare at the center. Right as you turn the beef for the last time, pour in all of the teriyaki sauce (or other marinade). It will bubble, then simmer and thicken further.
- Slice, then serve. Allow the meat to rest for 5-10 minutes, then remove kitchen twine and slice into 1″ thick pieces. Serve immediately with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and extra sauce drizzled on top.
Tips For The Best Beef Negimaki Recipe
- Make homemade teriyaki sauce! It’s easier than it sounds and has much more depth and flavor than store-bought.
- Partially freeze the steak! 15-20 minutes in a freezer before slicing will make it much easier to slice.
- Use a meat mallet! Don’t worry about slicing the steak paper thin — instead, invest in a meat mallet (a great kitchen tool in general!) to help pound it out.
- Secure the negimaki rolls! You may think that the rolls will hold their shape, but you really want to secure them with either kitchen twine or toothpicks to ensure they don’t fall apart during cooking.
FAQs
If you use rice flour or omit the flour altogether, yes! The rice flour helps to thicken the sauce, which we love. For a thinner sauce, leave it out entirely.
In our research, we found a lot of recipes call for marinating the beef for 15-30 minutes. You can certainly do this, but we found the beef to be plenty flavorful without the extra marinating time. Homemade teriyaki sauce is much more flavorful than store-bought and gives this flavor a lot of depth and umami in a short cook time!
Skirt steak and flank steak are our top pics, but any tender cut of beef that is thinly pounded and cut intro strips will work!
It lessens their bite, while still maintaining their texture. Yes, you can skip this step if you really want, but we don’t recommend it.
Yes, chicken negimaki is delicious! Use thinly pounded chicken cutlets in place of beef, then cook until fully cooked through and chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165F.
Yes! Assemble the negimaki up to 8 hours before cooking, then refrigerate until ready to cook.
How To Serve Beef Negimaki
If you’re enjoying Beef Negimaki as an appetizer, it’s great on its own. As an entrée, we recommend the following simple side dishes:
- A small bowl of white rice or seasoned sushi rice
- Blistered vegetables! Edamame, string beans, or shishsito peppers are all great
- Miso soup
- Or try serving these with ginger scallion sauce on top for a different flavor profile!
- Alongside spicy ramen noodles!
This beef negimaki is totally and completely irresistible! It’s a little sweet and sticky from the reduced teriyaki sauce, but so tender. And we just love the slight crunch from the green onions! Truly a simple, but sophisticated weeknight dinner that is absolutely packed with flavor!
If you make this Beef Negimaki recipe, please let us know by leaving a review and rating below! We think you’re going to be blown away by the depth of flavor from such a simple, quick recipe!
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Beef Negimaki Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ⅓ lb skirt steak flank steak, or other tender cut of beef
- 1 bunch of scallions
- Kosher salt
- ¼ cup rice flour
- 2 Tbsp grapeseed oil or other light, neutral oil, such as avocado, canola, or vegetable oil
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
- ½ cup teriyaki sauce
Instructions
- Blanch the scallions. Trim the ends off each scallion, then cut into pieces about 3" long. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, then add 1 tsp Kosher salt. Add the scallions and cook for 30-45 seconds, or until just beginning to wilt. Submerge the scallions in an ice bath, then drain and transfer to a paper towel lined plate.
- Prepare the steak. Place steak in a freezer for 20 minutes to make it easier to slice. When ready, trim off excess fat (it's okay to leave some on, just remove large pieces!), then slice with the grain into pieces that are about ½" thick.
- Pound the steak. Place three pieces of sliced beef on a piece of plastic wrap or parchment paper, leaving a few inches in between each. Top with another piece of plastic wrap or parchment, then use a meat mallet to pound into ⅛" thick slices. Set aside, then repeat with remaining steak.
- Assemble the maki rolls. Working on a cutting board, overlap three pieces of steak to form a rectangle. Season very lightly with Kosher salt, then place 3-4 pieces of blanched scallion along the short end. Roll the steak, then secure with either kitchen twine or toothpicks. Repeat with remaining steak and scallions.
- Coat with rice flour, optional. Place ¼ cup rice (or all-purpose) flour in a medium bowl. Toss each maki roll very lightly with rice flour, dusting off any excess.
- Cook the negimaki. Heat a large cast iron or heavy bottom skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 Tbsp grapeseed oil (or other light oil). When hot, add negimaki beef rolls and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, about 8-9 minutes total, until seared and crispy on the outside, but medium-rare at the center. Right as you turn the beef for the last time, pour in all of the teriyaki sauce. It will bubble, then simmer and thicken further.
- Slice, then serve. Allow the meat to rest for 5-10 minutes, then remove kitchen twine and slice into 1" thick pieces. Serve immediately on a platter with sesame seeds and extra sauce drizzled on top.
Video
Notes
- Negimaki can be assembled up to 8 hours ahead of time, then refrigerated until ready to cook.
- Check out our recipe for homemade teriyaki sauce! You’ll need ½ cup sake, ¼ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce, and ¼ cup mirin.
Let us know your thoughts!