| Easy
Style Cooking with an Asian Flair (part 2)
Key points to succesful wok stir
frys
by Eleanor Hoh
Until
I started teaching Asian cooking, I didn’t realize there
were so many misconceptions about Asian stir frys. So,
to get you started, here are a few key points. My only
other tip would be to gather all your prepped ingredients
and utensils next to the stove prior to stir frying. When
you’re organized, it’s quick and easy.
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Veggies,
meat and sauce are stir fried separately because they
cook at different rates.
This means, you stir fry all your veggies first, plate
them and cover with foil to keep warm. Next, stir fry
your meat and add to your plate of veggies, cover again.
Next, add your sauce into the wok till it’s
cooked (bubbling all the way through). Add your
veggies and meat back into the sauce to combine and switch
off your heat and your dish is ready. |
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Always
stir fry your veggies first because they don’t stick
to the wok like meat does. This saves you a cleanup step
and you want to use the meat bits to flavor the sauce.
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| • |
Veggies
and meat share the same stir fry process; “heat
your wok till smoky, add oil, add garlic and ginger, fry”. |
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The
only difference between stir frying your vegetables and
stir frying your meat is that veggies should be stirred
immediately when they touch the oil whereas meat should
be seared on one side before you stir fry. |
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There
are two paths to stir frying with each path having one
variation:
Path
#1: “Veggies only” - the
variation is whether you are going to season the veggies
directly or whether you are going to have sauce.
Path
#2: “Meat and veggies”
- the variation is whether you are cooking a delicate
fish like Tilapia or scallops. In this case, you
would cook in sauce in the wok and combine on the plate
to prevent the fish from falling apart. |
With these tips, I hope you will be able to achieve a more
successful stir fry.
To learn more about “Easy Style Cooking with an
Asian Flair”, log onto www.eleanorhoh.com.
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