Stir Fry Recipes

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. dark sesame oil
• 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 1 lb. fresh thin asparagus, trimmed and cut in to 2 inch pieces
• 1 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 2/3 cup unsalted cashews, chopped

Directions:

Heat both oils in a wok or skillet (using a wok works better) over medium heat. Add ginger and stir until blended. Add asparagus and stir fry until "almost" tender. Add soy sauce and cashews. Stir until asparagus is tender but crisp and serve.

By Deeli from Richland, WA

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 4 cups of three or four assorted vegetables, cut into bite size pieces
• 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• Slivered almonds, toasted, to taste

Directions:

By Deeli from Richland, WA

In the U.S. there's a spice called Oriental Five Spices. The ingredients on the bottle read: cinnamon, anise, ginger, nutmeg and cloves. I've mixed it into my stir fry and I highly recommend it because it adds a lot of flavor.

Also try some soy sauce for added flavor, that is also delicious!

My husband and I have been to Israel twice and we LOVE your country. The Israelis are very warm and friendly!

I would try using fresh garlic instead of garlic powder. I also always use soy sauce and sometimes fish sauce or broth to add a little flavor.

Here is a step by step stir fry recipe that I posted in the past. It is chicken but you could make it vegetarian by replacing chicken with tofu and excluding the fish sauce. The chili peppers make it very spicy but I leave them out for my kids and they still like it pretty well.

www.thriftyfun.com/tf41393920.tip.html

Good luck!

Jess

Just last night I made delicious Chicken & Veg Stir Fry. I always use Soy Sauce, Oyster Sauce and Sugar Syrup in my stir-fry, 2/3 tablespoons of each. I make my own sugar syrup and keep it in the fridge as it has many uses. Green, red and yellow peppers cut in strips are also good in a stir-fry. Enjoy, Sarita - South Africa

When it's almost done, you need to add a flavored sauce, turn the heat down to simmer and put on the lid. Leave it alone for 5 minutes, then serve. I had the same problem and discovered the sauce at the end is what make all the difference.

This sauce can be anything from a little chicken broth to one of those sauces you buy in a jar and mix with a little water. You can't achieve it by simply sprinkling on a few spices unfortunately. However, the spices and the sauce are what make the difference.
How about marinating the tofu in a strong solution of soy sauce and toasted sesame seed oil before?

Like you I could not understand why my stir-fry did not taste right until I discovered sesame seed oil. It makes all the difference. Just remember a small amount goes a long ways. Also soy sauce will give it lots of flavor, but unless you are using low sodium soy sauce cut back on the salt. Try experimenting with different sauces, they will add flavor.

I recently found a site, www.asiarecipe.com/ that is worth checking out. Haven't had time to play with any of their recipes yet, but some sound really good. I've done very little stir-fry but I love the way the food comes out regardless of the sauce... not overcooked, with fresh color and flavor in the veggies, etc. Down here in the Southland we tend to cook the dickens out of stuff and I love good Southern cooking too, but stir-fry is a nice change. I'll be trying lots of recipes from this site as time permits... especially some of the sauces. Good luck, and happy cooking!

Here is an easy stir fry recipe that would work well with beef or pork. The dark brown sauce it makes is delicious! You could also substitute any veggies used in stir fry recipes; some are: baby corn, water chestnuts, broccoli, cauliflower, zuccinni. Serve this recipe over steamed or fried rice.

Asian Beef

1 1/2 pounds top round steak or sirloin -- cut into strips
1/4 cup dry sherry -- optional (I use beef broth)
1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon ginger, freshly grated
2 cloves garlic, pressed (or more)
2 teaspoons sesame oil
(found in the Asian section of your grocery store)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons vegetable oil -- divided
12 ounces mushrooms -- sliced
6 ounces snow peas (frozen if fresh aren't available)

In a large bowl, combine sherry or broth, soy sauce, ginger, garlic,
sesame oil and cornstarch; pour over meat strips, stirring to
coat.

In a large skillet or wok, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over a
medium high heat.

Add mushrooms and pea pods, stir frying until pea pods are
bright green and mushrooms are wilted. Remove from skillet and
set aside.

Drain marinade from beef and reserve. Add remaining oil to
skillet.

Stir-fry beef (1/2 at a time), 1 to 2 minutes. Return
vegetables, beef and marinade to skillet; cook and stir until
sauce is cooked and thickens. Let cool slightly.

I don't think you really need a recipe for stir fry. Just cut some meat into bite-size pieces and throw them in the pan with some olive oil and soy sauce. When the meat starts to get done, throw in whatever veggies you have on hand, with more soy sauce. Ginger and garlic taste good too. Cook some rice at the same time. It makes a pretty quick dinner, especially if you use frozen veggies already chopped. I haven't made this in a while but now I'm getting hungry for it... maybe I'll make some tonight.

Stir-Fry Pork with Ginger
Submitted By: Jenny Au
A simple Chinese dish, this is best served with steamed rice. The wine and ginger gives the dish its fragrant smell.

Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 15 Minutes
Ready In: 30 Minutes
Yields: 2 servings
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 inch piece fresh ginger root, thinly sliced
1/4 pound thinly sliced lean pork
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 green onion, chopped
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine

DIRECTIONS
Heat oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Fry ginger in hot oil until fragrant, then add pork, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, salt, and sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
Stir in the sesame oil, green onion, and rice wine. Simmer until the pork is tender.

I use the frozen mixture of broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower with my stir fry cause thats what we like. My mom uses the stir fry veggies and she loves them. I got some snow peas and bean sprouts to add to my next one when I went shopping today. Yummmm.

i agree with allison, you can make stir fry out of anything growing in your garden and a little meat. i've used everything from broccoli, zuchini, mustard greens, cabbage, you name it! even a little tomato.
since i usually make stir fry to stretch meat or to get rid of the produce in the fridge i rarely use frozen veggies. to make it different from time to time i might use fire oil (hot pepper oil) or sesame oil found in the grocery store with the oriental foods. have fun

THanks for the sauce ideas and I will check out the website

Hi, I stir fry at least once a week with whatever I have on hand. Here is what I do.

I always start the rice first. I use a rice cooker because, for some reason, I could never get the rice to cook correctly. It is always perfect with my little cooker.

Then I chop up my veggies in similarly sized pieces: strips or large chopped pieces, usually. I don't use frozen veggies unless I don't have anything else because I think they get too mushy. I like them to be crisp! I try to divide my veggies in sections: onions, garlic and mushrooms first, then hard veggies like carrots, then soft ones like peas or broccoli. That is the order I'll add them to the pan.

Then I cut up my meat, often chicken. That way, I can use the same cutting board and then sanitize it. Sometimes I will marinate the meat in a teriyaki, ginger or soy sauce overnight first.

Heat up the oil in the pan so the onions will sizzle when added. Cook them for a minute then add the meat. Brown it and then add the harder veggies. I'll add some soy and water at this point and put a lid on for a few minutes, to steam the veggies. Then I take it off and add the rest. You can make one up easily by adding soy, garlic, ginger and water together, sometimes I put in cornstarch to make it thicker too. I had a good cookbook with my first wok that I use occasionally for inspiration.

Serve it over rice with soy or extra sauce. I've also cooked up ramen noodles and added them at the end instead of rice. Makes a nice change. If you have leftover stirfry but no rice left, you can add it to ramen for lunch the next day!

Here are some stir fry recipes that I've posted on ThriftyFun:

• Thai Basil Chicken
• $10 Dinners: Chicken Stir Fry

Here is a search on ThriftyFun for Stir Fry recipes. There are some sauce recipes too. It looks like Robin has several delicious ones.

• Stir Fry Search

Good luck!

Jess

I've heard that the secret to stir fry is to cut all the ingredients to be the same size so that it cooks at the same rate. Also, it can't be too big for those chopsticks!