Fifteen-Minute Vegetable Stir-Fry
Crisp-tender vegetables in a glossy, balanced sauce. A stir-fry for clearing the vegetable drawer on a busy night.
A stir-fry should be the fastest, easiest, most fridge-clearing dinner of the week. Home versions tend to disappoint for two reasons: the pan isn't hot enough, and the sauce isn't balanced.
Fixing both essentially replaces a trip to the local takeaway. Here's how it comes together.
Ingredients
Sauce
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey or brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons water
Stir-fry
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- About 500g (4 cups) chopped vegetables — broccoli, peppers, carrots, mushrooms, snap peas
- Cooked rice or noodles, to serve
- Sesame seeds and sliced spring onions, to finish
Instructions
- Whisk all sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set by the stove.
- Heat a wok or large skillet over the highest heat your stove will go. When it's almost smoking, add the oil.
- Add the harder vegetables first (carrots, broccoli) and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the softer ones (peppers, mushrooms, snap peas) and stir-fry for another 2 minutes.
- Push the vegetables to one side and add the garlic and ginger to the bare spot. Cook for 20 seconds, then stir everything together.
- Give the sauce a stir and pour it in. Toss for 30 seconds until it thickens and coats everything glossy.
- Serve immediately over rice or noodles, finished with sesame seeds and spring onions.
Cooking tips
- Get the pan smoking-hot before adding oil. A cool pan is the difference between stir-fry and stew.
- Cut everything before you start cooking. There is no time to chop once the wok is going.
- Add protein (sliced chicken, tofu, shrimp) by cooking it first, removing, and returning at the end.
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