I don’t know a single person who likes mushy vegetables (aside from things like mashed potatoes and roasted squash I mean). The problem I have with most fry-s of the stir variety is the veg turns to mush while you cook down the sauce. I reversed the order of our usual recipe and VOI-FKCIN-LA we had crispy veg. If you’re vegetarian just leave out the meat steps, add the garlic and ginger to the sauce ingredients, and substitute chicken broth with water. This seems like a lot but it comes together really quickly once you get rolling.
Marinade for steak or chicken
1/2 cup soy sauce
3 garlic cloves minced (I am lazy so I use a garlic press)
2tsp fresh grated ginger (or from the tube)
1 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1lb chicken or steak – thinly sliced
Rice
2C water
1 TBS butter
1C white rice
Veg
1 large shallot or half a small onion
1 red bell pepper sliced
1 cup sugar snap peas
1 cup carrots sliced
1 cup mushrooms sliced
2 cups broccoli
1/2 cup water chestnuts
1 – 2 cups julienned kale (I like Tuscan kale)
**note – these measurements are pretty loose. All my cups are heaping or I just don’t measure at all. You can also add baby corn but I hate the texture so I leave it out.
Sauce
1/4C soy or teriyaki sauce
3 TBS brown sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
1/2C chicken broth
1 – 2 TBS hoisin sauce
1/2 tsp everything bagel seasoning (optional)
1 1/2 TBS corn starch
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
How To – Rice:
**note – if you are serving with rice, do this while the meat is marinating, the rest of the recipe comes together really fast. If you keep the rice covered it will stay hot until everything else is ready:
- Boil water and butter
- Add rice, stir, return to boil
- Reduce heat to simmer, cover, and let cook 15 minutes
- Remove from heat and let sit for 10 minutes
- Fluff with a fork, cover and set aside until ready to serve
How To – Stir Fry:
- Whisk marinade ingredients together in a bowl, add raw meat and toss to coat
(I wear rubber gloves so I can really rub the marinade in) - Let sit at room temp (covered) for 30 min.
- Whisk together all sauce ingredients and set aside
(you want time to let the brown sugar dissolve, and you don’t want any corn starch lumps) - While the meat marinates and the rice cooks, slice all veg
(you can keep pea pods whole or cut in half) - In a large skillet (or wok if you have one, I don’t) heat olive oil – enough to cover the bottom of the pan – over med/high heat until oil is shimmering
- Add meat and any marinade left in the bowl to the pan, cook through – 3 to 5 minutes
- Remove cooked meat from the pan and set aside
- Give your sauce a final whisk and then add to the pan – stir frequently and let it bubble which will begin the thickening – you want a sauce that will stick to the veg and not just run all over your plate
- Once the sauce has started to thicken add the veg, toss to coat with sauce, cook 2 – 3 minutes
- Add the meat back into the pan toss to coat
- Serve immediately over rice (or not)
We got the Eva stamp on approval on this one: after arguing with us about taking her three ‘no thank you bites’ (a requirement for new foods) she gave me a “this doesn’t taste as bad as I expected…” (trust me, that’s a win). I also had seconds, which is not a common occurrence. Takes less time than waiting for takeout to show up, and all things considered less effort than deciding what to order from said takeout.
That’s all I’ve got in the tank this morning, folks. More coffee is in my immediate future. The end.
Cooking While Caffeinated 