Stir Fry combinations?

I often make a quick stir fry when I don't have much time for cooking or when I am tired. I simply take whatever I can find in my fridge and pantry, vegetables, tofu, left-over lentils, noodles or quinoa, spices, herbs, nuts, etc. and toss them into my wok. My favourite way to start is with some organic vegetable oil, to which I add sesame seeds, chillies, garlic, onions and lemongrass. Then I add the vegetables that I have cut into julienne strips, throw in some cashew nuts, sesame seeds, fresh coriander or parsley, and finish it all off with a good squeeze of lemon juice or freshly grated ginger.

 

I love making a stir fry, and the best thing about it is the fact that it is just so fast, it's ready almost before you've even stopped to think about it! I love sweet potato, so will include that in anything that I can. I always try to cut it as thinly as possible so that it cooks fast, and I love sweetcorn and onions. They're absolutely essential stir fry ingredients for me, and will always be included in anything that I am choosing to make. I am a vegetarian, but will sometimes put some meat in a different wok to cook for my family so that I will be able to put that in when I have served my vegetables from the pan. The best thing about it is that it can be quite cheap, and it is certainly very healthy as it's full of vegetables, so really there's nothing not to like about it!

 

I like just about any kind of vegetable in stir fry. I guess my favorites are crunchy ones: carrots, snap peas, etc. I usually cook mine with chicken with some soy sauce, orange zest, orange juice, and sesame oil. Another combination I like is the classic beef with broccoli and peppers. The more spicy the better

 

We're really big on stir fry in my house...so easy to put together and pretty quick to make, too. There are so many combinations to try, too. I love seafood, so one of my favorites includes shrimp, broccoli, carrots and zucchini, with a honey garlic sauce. The boys like chicken or beef more though, so a lot of the time we'll do one of the two and julienne the vegetables with a more traditional soy sauce or sesame marinade.

 

I love stir fry cooking and definitely have a few combinations to try. Here are some of the top that I love to cook.

Shrimp/rice/water chestnuts/ soy sauce/ hot peppers
Chicken/ broccoli/ peppers/ onions/ lo mein
beef/ broccoli/ peas/ onions

I love stir fry because it's so versatile as to what you can make. Anything will fit as long as you can fry it. Adding a little bit of cooking sherry will work well too if you don't mind that sort of salty malt flavor.

 

I absolutely love the stir fried cabbage medley they sell at Asian Chao in our local malls. If I recall, it's a blend of cabbage,carrots and mushrooms. Every time I go there I get a double order of it. I've tried re-creating it at home in my own stir fries but have never gotten it to taste quite the same. Close, but not exactly like theirs. I can see they use a lot of garlic in it, but I suspect they are either using MSG and/or some chicken broth too. It's got kind of a "meaty" flavor to it. At one point in time I was honestly considering applying for a part time job there in the evenings so I could see how they make it, then quit after a few days, lol.

At home, I stick with the usual stuff, big pieces of red bell peppers, red onion, carrots, broccoli and mushrooms. I try to avoid anything that will get too soggy, like zucchini, even though I love that too. If I have some cashews, I will throw them in there too along with some green onion. I always forget to pick up some hot chili peppers though when I am at the grocery store.

 

I don't really make stir fry all the time. However, when I do, I add chicken, too. I do not really like pork or beef in stir fry. I add different vegetables too like bean sprouts, carrots, string beans, etc. It's a very healthy yet quick food to make.

 

Favorite ingredients in vegetable store fry are cabbage, carrots, snow peas, and onions. Sometimes cauliflowers could be a good addition too and of course things like bell peppers are always welcome, but I usually just try and keep it as simple as possible. After putting in my favorite vegetables, I'd just put in some soy sauce and a little sugar, a bit of water and some starch to thicken the sauce up a bit and then I have a pretty good side dish. You might also want to try putting in bean sprouts although I think that's a little less conventional.

 

When marinating stir fry, my go-to list of ingredients are:

- Choice of meat (poultry/beef/pork)
- Sriracha (for that kick of heat)
- Soy sauce
- HONEY (really "sweetens" the deal)
- Sesame Oil
- Sesame Seeds

I'll usually start marinating in the morning so I can come home to a completely marinated batch of deliciousness. I'll then throw it on the pan and it'll be done relatively quickly. For veggies I bounce between broccoli and Chinese green beans.

 

It is delicious, really can't go wrong with that flavour profile . Oh do give it a try! It's not much different at all, perhaps just a little more care is needed to make sure that it doesn't overcook and get that rubbery taste that shrimp can be prone to. But other than that you treat it much the same way you would other meats in a stir fry .

 

Something to pay attention to with shrimp, is what brands you are buying and how much they shrink down when cooking. Much of the shrimp sold in the stores is soaked in a solution that causes it to swell several times it's size, so they can freeze it and sell it as larger shrimp. All you are really getting is a bunch of baby shrimp and salty water. You'll notice if they are doing this, if your once large frozen shrimp shrink down into tiny little ones when cooked. Sometimes it's better to splurge for the fresh stuff because you know what you are actually getting.

Also, be sure to completely thaw and pat dry before cooking, so avoid splattering in the pan.

 

Our fridge looks like a garden, so we often have to create meals just to get rid of things before they go bad. So stir fry is a big one.. and soups etc. So our stir fry usually just looks like whatever veggies were about to go lol. I also like to add fruits too.. don't underestimate what fruit can do to a meal. Just as good as anything else and my fave way to mix it up.