10 Ways to Use Roast Beef

Recently, my husband put a pretty large beef loin roast in the smoker for a few hours, and when it was done, we had a delicious mess of meat to use in all kinds of recipes.

We actually don’t eat beef often, but this had been hanging out in our freezer after an impulse sale purchase at the grocery store.  In an effort to make ROOM in the freezers our garden bounty this baby had to get cooked.

He seasoned it well and then seared it on all sides in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet (no it wasn’t really big enough if you are asking yourself that question.) Then, it went in our electric smoker at around 220 degrees for 2-3 hours – cooked to medium-rare. We used Peach BBQ Smoking Paper for the first time on the smoker (instead of aluminum foil) and it worked great! Our Cutco Salmon Knife is also a must-have – made in the USA and a lifetime warranty.

While it was smoking, I took that 12-inch Cast Iron Skillet and filled it up with yellow onions and green peppers.  I figured no matter how we would be eating the beef, we would need onions and peppers.

You will notice this below, as I tell you about our favorite 10 ways to use leftover roast beef – they almost all include peppers and onions!

We actually cut half of the cooked roast off and froze it whole for later. We have found that freezing cooked meat works better if you leave it whole, versus if you slice and freeze.  So we freeze first, then slice with our meat slicer when thawed.

So, here are some ideas of what you can do with the beef.  This is not a comprehensive list – just a list of our favorites. I hope you enjoy!

Beef Fajitas

Saute some yellow onions, green (and/or hot) peppers, toss some taco seasoning on them.  Thin slice some of that leftover beef and toss it into heat. Meanwhile, lightly warm some flour tortillas.  If you like beans, you can warm some of those up too – eat them on the side or on the fajita. You are the one eating it, you can do what you want.  Rice is also good on the side. Other toppings and/or side items can include: fresh tomato, avocado, shredded lettuce, corn, sour cream (or plain Greek yogurt), salsa, tortilla chips. You get the idea.

Philly Steak Sandwiches

Again, saute some yellow onions with green peppers, add mushrooms, thin-slice some of that leftover beef, put it on a good hoagie bun, top with some shredded mozzarella cheese and put it under the broiler in your oven for a few minutes to toast the bread and melt the cheese. If you are traditional, of course, it needs to have ranch dressing on top. If you are a bit adventurous, this Peruvian Green Sauce is great on top (it is also good on top of 100 other things we eat.)

Steak and Eggs

This one doesn’t need much explanation.  The prospect of steak and eggs for breakfast is a fabulous reason to NOT eat your whole steak at dinner time. Enough said!

Steak and Pepper Pizza

My husband and I have attempted many pizza dough recipes, and have never really loved any of them. Too thin, too thick, too soggy, too crispy … we had kind of given up, to be honest.  Then, we met the Skinnytaste Bagel Dough recipe.  This dough is actually pretty healthy, and it makes fabulous pizza crust! For Steak and Pepper Pizza, we would probably do a white garlic alfredo sauce, steak, peppers, onions, mushrooms, baby spinach and top with Monterey jack cheese.

Steak Salad with Fries

My husband really likes steak salad, and he loves it with fries on top.  A healthier way we have found to make this is by making Air Fryer Fries. For the salad, we usually do romaine and mixed greens with red onion, cucumber, tomato, green pepper, mushrooms, steak, a bit of shredded cheese, ranch dressing, and the fries!

Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

I LOVE mushrooms! I have an insanely hard time walking by portobello mushroom caps at the grocery store.  Normally when I stuff them, I do some sort of crab concoction – but this way is also amazing!

Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers

I like stuffing peppers almost as much as I like stuffing portobello mushrooms. Most of the time for stuffed green peppers, we do them the traditional way with sausage, rice and tomato sauce. For stuffing hot peppers, we do cream cheese, shredded cheddar cheese, and bacon.  But, when you are talking leftover beef – this is also a great way to make them.

Beef Stroganoff

This is one of my favorite dinners in the winter. I like it over egg noodles, my husband likes it over mashed potatoes. So, that one is always a struggle.  You can make the sauce however you like, but I try to stay away from using canned “Cream of …” soup. I use beef broth, cream cheese, sour cream, flour, seasonings.  This recipe is pretty close to what I would do.

BBQ Beef Sandwiches

Thinly sliced leftover beef warmed with your favorite BBQ sauce and put on a bun. It doesn’t get much easier than that!

Beef Stir Fry

We make stir fry quite often, especially in the fall when my hunting husband brings home goose, duck, and deer. Just chop a bunch of vegetables, depending on what is on hand. Normally we include cabbage, broccoli, yellow onion, green pepper, mushrooms, carrots, edamame. Then, we alternate between some sort of Asian noodles or rice – it just depends on the day. I don’t have a specific recipe that I follow for sauce, but I use a mix of the following until it tastes right: hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar or honey, sriracha, ginger, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, garlic.  This recipe is similar.

If you are interested in some more ideas for leftover beef, you might find something else you like on my Beef Recipes board on Pinterest.