Vietnamese Butter Beef Recipe (2025)

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A delicious recipe to fry up for a quick mid-week dinner. Melt-in-the-mouth sirloin slices paired with fried onions and an Asian, buttery sauce. Vietnamese butter beef is a recipe you must try!

My son has just started school and I don’t know about you, but lately I just want something quick to cook in the evening.

We don’t eat Vietnamese food often but I can see this butter beef recipe being added to our weekly dinners. It’s just THAT good!

We chose to serve ours with white rice but you could also go for rice noodles or rice vermicelli. For a healthier version, try sandwiching your steak slices between lettuce leaves to make lettuce wraps, or rice paper like they do in Vietnam. You could even make little spring rolls. Happy cooking!

Ingredients needed for Vietnamese Butter Beef

Ingredients needed for your salad

Scroll down to the recipe card for exact quantities.

Sirloin steaks – this cut of beef is my preferred as it’s not overly fatty but has some marbling, which helps with tenderness. You could also use ribeye or beef tenderloin.

Garlic cloves – you can buy pre-crushed garlic too which is always helpful.

Caster sugar – granulated works too. Brown sugar could also be an option.

Sesame oil – I chose sesame to add extra flavour but you could also go for vegetable oil or canola oil.

Rice vinegar

Soy sauce – we always used the reduced-salt soy.

Fish sauce

Green onions

Unsalted butter

​To serve –

Basmati rice (cooked to your preferred method).

Lettuce – I chose little gem.

Cherry tomatoes

Lime wedges

Vietnamese Butter Beef Recipe (2)

If you’re looking for a delicious white rice recipe, try my coconut milk rice recipe. Coconut milk rice is cooked with additional ginger, garlic and a pandan leaf. The aromas you’ll smell are wonderful. They’ll transport you to South East Asia for sure!

Equipment needed

Chopping board x 2

Medium bowl

Garlic crusher

Spoon for mixing the sauce

Small bowl

​Nonstick frying pan

Knives for cutting steak and onions

Bowl to serve

How to make Vietnamese Butter Beef (step-by-step)

For more detailed instructions and quantities, see my recipe card below.

Step 1 – Slice the steaks thinly and marinade in salt and black pepper and the crushed garlic. For best results, marinade in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Step 2 – Mix the sugar, rice vinegar, soy sauce and fish sauce in a small bowl.

Step 3 – Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet and fry the steak slices until nearly cooked through. Make sure you get a good sear. Add the butter and allow the cube to melt. Pour in the soy sauce mixture and leave to bubble away for a minute.

Step 4 – Serve in a bowl with the rice, lettuce, tomatoes and lime wedges.

Vietnamese Butter Beef Recipe (3)

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Vietnamese butter beef gluten-free?

This dish could be gluten-free if you choose a gluten-free soy sauce and fish sauce. Both of these items are not naturally gluten-free.

Could I make this in a dutch oven?

I suppose you could cook the steak in a pot in the oven but fry it would give the best results.

​Which vietnamese herbs could I serve with this?

Fresh herbs like Thai basil or spring onions would make a good accompaniment to butter beef.

What’s the best knife for slicing steak?

A chef’s knife is the best knife for slicing raw steaks. They usually are about 6-12 inches long and are brilliant for cutting through sinewy steaks.

What’s nuoc cham?

Nuoc cham is basically the name for an Asian sauce which combines something sweet, salty, sour and spicy. Our sauce doesn’t contain something spicy and has soy sauce which a nuoc cham doesn’t usually include.

Can I fry the steak in a cast iron pan instead?

​Certainly! You may just need to use a tsp more oil as cast-iron tends to stick.

Vietnamese Butter Beef Recipe (4)

Vietnamese Butter Beef

A delicious recipe to fry up for a quick mid-week dinner. Melt-in-the-mouth sirloin slices paired with fried onions and an Asian, buttery sauce. Vietnamese butter beef is a recipe you must try!

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine Vietnamese

Servings 2 people

Calories 507 kcal

Equipment

  • 2 Chopping board

  • 1 Medium bowl

  • 1 Garlic Crusher

  • 1 spoon

  • 1 Small bowl

  • 1 nonstick frying pan

  • 1 Chef's knife

  • 1 dinner serving bowl

Ingredients

  • 2 sirloin steaks
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 tbsp caster sugar
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 small onion
  • 20 g unsalted butter
  • lettuce leaves to serve
  • cherry tomatoes to serve
  • 1 lime to serve
  • Cooked basmati rice cooked to how you like it

Instructions

  • Slice the steaks thinly and marinade in salt and black pepper and the crushed garlic. For best results, marinade in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

  • Mix the sugar, rice vinegar, soy sauce and fish sauce in a small bowl.

  • Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet and fry the steak slices until nearly cooked through. Make sure you get a good sear. Add the butter and allow the cube to melt. Pour in the soy sauce mixture and leave to bubble away for a minute.

  • Serve in a bowl with the rice, lettuce, tomatoes and lime wedges.

Nutrition

Calories: 507kcalCarbohydrates: 15gProtein: 53gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 159mgSodium: 1845mgPotassium: 937mgFiber: 2gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 269IUVitamin C: 13mgCalcium: 99mgIron: 5mg

Keyword Easy, Midweek meals, Quick, vietnamese

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More Beef Recipes –

Beef Rendang

Brazilian Beef Picadillo

Beef Coconut Curry

Beef Empanadas

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Vietnamese Butter Beef Recipe (2025)

FAQs

What does butter do to beef? ›

Butter has a rich, creamy taste that, when melted over the hot surface of a perfectly cooked steak, creates a symphony of flavors. This combination doesn't just add fat; it introduces depth and complexity, enhancing the natural savoriness of the meat.

How to eat butter beef? ›

Butter beef is a natural partner to egg noodles, rice, and potatoes. It can also be served with a vibrant green salad to cut through the richness of the dish. This melt-in-your-mouth recipe is simple enough for a weeknight dinner or a special occasion that calls for saucy deliciousness.

Does butter make beef tender? ›

Now, before you accuse restaurants of butter sabotage, let's talk about the "tenderizer" effect. The fat in the butter can help soften the meats' protein fibers, resulting in a more tender steak. It's like giving your steak a spa day, minus the fluffy robes and cucumbers on the eyes.

Is it better to cook beef in butter or oil? ›

As you can see, between butter and oil, butter has a dramatically lower smoke point. Because of this, if you heat up a pan hot enough to sear your steak, putting a dollop of butter in first means it is likely to burn up. However, that doesn't mean you can't still get the delicious flavors of butter with your steak.

Why does butter make steak taste better? ›

Butter actually helps to enhance the Maillard reaction in a searing steak. According to Serious Eats, the proteins in the hot butter will quickly cook and add color to any pale areas of the steak when spooned over the top, resulting in a flavorful, golden-brown crust.

Why do restaurants put butter on steaks? ›

Very simple. Fat is flavor. That rich butter flavor and the fatty richness complements a steak well. It adds another dimension of flavor if it's a compound butter.

Why does beef taste like butter? ›

(2) Fat stores odoriferous compounds, which give the meat an appetizing smell. With a higher fat content, the beef will have a sweet, buttery taste and less of an acidic aftertaste.

Does beef need butter? ›

If you do decide to add some fat, stick with olive oil, not butter, says Angelo Auriana, executive chef at Factory Place Hospitality. "There is no real need for butter when cooking a steak because it already has plenty of fat and flavor in the meat itself," he says.

What does adding butter to ground beef do? ›

It's a trick we use in our Juicy Pub-Style Burgers and our Tender Juicy Grilled Burgers. The butter doesn't add buttery flavor, per se, rather, the milk fat lends remarkable beefy depth and richness to the patties.

Does butter make meat juicier? ›

Butter basting your steak helps you achieve an even, rosy pink interior, juicy and full of promise, rather than a distinct red line in the center, which is often tough and somehow both hot and cold at the same time (like seared ahi tuna, and not in a good way).

Does butter absorb into meat? ›

That's because the flavor of butter doesn't effectively absorb into the meat, particularly with options that are relatively high in fat, like beef and pork. This is because, cooked slowly, butter will end up absorbing flavor from the meat rather than the other way around.

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