The Simplest Chinese Stir Fry Recipe For Absolute Beginners

A couple of days ago, I was too lazy to move out from the sofa, until dinner time came. I got very little time left to prepare, so I did a ‘quick fix’: stir fried cauliflower, broccoli and carrot.

Honestly, I was never a huge fan of either of these three cooked vegetables. But I knew they are very healthy, I had to have them time to time, and at some point I even started liking them. This kind of mix is not very typical in Northeast Chinese Cuisine. Traditionally, in the North East of China, we only used cauliflower (sometimes with carrots), but I found this a bit ‘boring’, so started adding broccoli in. Furthermore, broccoli has many good properties for helping with vitamin C intake, cell repair, anti-aging, and so on.

Vegetables like these, I personally don’t like them too soft. I like them cooked, but still a bit crunchy. For this, you don’t have to cook them for too long.

Preparation

I did it in two steps: first, briefly boil the vegetables; then, stir fry them together with oil and garlic.

Ingredients:

• Broccoli, cauliflower and carrot.
• Oil, garlic, salt, Mushroom essence (optional).

Preparation:

• Bring the water to boiling, then put all the vegetables in. Boil them only for a couple of minutes, then take them out, and drain them.
• Chop 3 cloves garlic.
• Place a wok on medium-high fire, pour around 4 tablespoons of oil in the wok. When the oil is heated up, put the chopped garlic in.
• Wait until the smell of garlic comes out (only a few seconds later), put all of the vegetables in, and half spoon of salt.
• A minute later, put one quarter tea spoon of ‘Mushroom essence’ (optional), mix well, and serve in a plate.

If you like the vegetables soft, boil them a little bit longer, but if you boil them for too long, the broccoli can lose some of its beneficial properties. Also unless you really like the taste of soya sauce, I wouldn’t advice to put soya sauce in. Soya sauce with half boiled cauliflower is not a good combination (but it all depends on your taste). If you like to put light soya sauce in, put it right before you finish the cooking. By the way, also, pay attention to your fire when stir frying, don’t get the food burnt.

This goes well with boiled rice. A healthy and lazy solution.

 

About the Author

Shibin Zhang writes about Chinese food and Chinese culture . She specialises in the cuisine of North East China and in Islamic Chinese cuisine. On her website, you can find more easy to cook Chinese Recipes .

Chinese Stir-Fry, Chicken with Vegetables

Benriner Japanese Mandoline Slicer $20.80 Benriner Japanese Mandolin Slicer The Benriner Slicer is a professional piece of equipment that no chef should be without. Its sharp super high quality stainless steel blades provide a clean and sharp cut to any vegetable. It comes with 4 different blades giving you the ability to slice in many various ways. The standard flat blade cuts perfect slices which can be easily adjusted for thicknes…

Joyce Chen 10-Inch Bamboo Steamer Set $14.95 This traditional steamer traps steam and absorbs moisture preventing dim sum from getting soggy. Fits perfectly inside any of Joyce Chen’s 12″ stir frys or 14″ woks. Steam from the wok is used to cook meats or seafood in the bottom tier, then add vegetables in the top tier. The bamboo steamer can be used to cook wheat buns, cakes, and dim sum, and is also a great way to steam small amounts of tam…

Cuisinart 726-38H Chef’s Classic Stainless 14-Inch Stir-Fry Pan with Helper Handle and Glass Cover $28.24 Healthful, high-heat stir-frying requires minimal oil and sears foods to seal in flavor, texture and nutrients….

Die Hungry $12.97 This sizzlin’ platter of musical stir-fry includes newly mixed and mastered tracks, some familiar and some fresh outta the oven! Also included are some tangy new sketches between the songs that’ll have you wetting the bed (Assuming you don’t already. For those of you who wet the bed, it is nothing to be ashamed of.) And as some extra hot-sauce on the side, ‘Die Hungry’ is also an ENHANCED CD, fe…

Stir-Fry with Helen Chen: Simple Techniques for Delicious, Healthy Chinese Cooking $2.85 In this instructional video, Helen Chen, daughter of Joyce Chen, shows you the basic techniques needed to create a variety of stir-fry dishes quickly and easily. -Make perfect Chinese restaurant-style steamed rice -Hold and use a Chinese knife -Chop vegetables so they cook evenly -Stir-fry using less oil -Cut meat so it’s more tender for cooking -Stir-fry vegetables so they remain crisp…

Chinese Stir-Frying Vegetables $18.30 Learn the fine art of Chinese stir-frying with this illustrative and detailed video designed to teach the novice and the professional….

Roger Hong’s Chinese Vedeo Cookbook Chicken $14.99 VHS tape includes demonstration of Hong’s cutting and boning instructions along with classic chinese chicken recipes…

Stir-fried Chicken & Vegetables – 24W x 18H – Peel and Stick Wall Decal by Wallmonkeys $33.99 WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won’t damage your paint or l…

Noodles, Rice and Stir-fry Beef Meal – 60W x 43H – Peel and Stick Wall Decal by Wallmonkeys $87.99 WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won’t damage your paint or l…

Bok Choy 1 – 36W x 24H – Peel and Stick Wall Decal by Wallmonkeys $51.99 WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won’t damage your paint or l…