Sonal Singh On Sonal's Table
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Chinese food is probably one of the most popular cuisines in the world.
And, why not!
It’s easy to prepare, tastes great and satiates those food cravings so well. Like so many others the world around, my family too loves Chinese food especially my daughters. Hence, I prepare it often. However, I do tweak the recipes to suit our Indian palate.
My family abhors the taste of fish sauce or oyster sauce. Truthfully speaking, I too do not enjoy cooking with them because they leave a lingering aroma that I do not like. So, my recipes skip many of the traditionally Chinese ingredients.
But, they are no less flavourful just like this
ASIAN STYLE STIR FRIED VEGETABLES
INGREDIENTS
- 1 tablespoon olive/refined oil
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
- 1 cup mushrooms, cliced
- 1 cup carrots, sliced
- 1 cup green pepper/capsicum, sliced
- 1 cups broccoli, broken into florets
- 1 cup baby corn, sliced diagonally
- 1 cup French beans cut into 2 inch pieces
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 5 plump garlic cloves, minced
- 1 inch piece of ginger, julienned (sliced into slivers)
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 1 tablespoon cornflour
- Chopped green onions and sesame seeds for garnish
- salt as per taste (please note that soy sauce is quite salty so taste the food before you add any salt)
Note – Chinese food is pretty simple to prepare but a point to note is to keep your wok on a high flame and stir the ingredients frequently. This helps to dry out the juices faster. Also, a good stir fry does not involve cooking the vegetables. They need to remain al dente (slightly undone) so that they are still crunchy when you eat them.
METHOD
- Heat water in a large pot and bring it to a boil. Simultaneously take another large pot and fill it with cold water (add ice if needed) as we shall use this to dunk the vegetables so that they retain their colour.
- Once the first pot starts bubbling over, tip in the broccoli and let it blanch for about 30 seconds. Remove from the pot and immediately dunk it in the pot of cold water. This will ensure that the broccoli retains its vibrant green colour.
- Repeat the above process for the beans, mushrooms, baby corn and carrots.
- Pour your soy sauce in a bowl and add the cornflour , water and sugar to it. Mix till all ingredients combine fully.
- Now our basic ingredients are ready.
- Heat oil in a wok (it’s better to work with a wok that has a handle that you can hold while stir frying)
- Once the oil is hot, add the garlic and ginger. Stir that for about 20-30 seconds till the flavour infuses in the oil. Next add the broccoli and other vegetables one by one. Stir fry on medium-high heat, stirring frequently for about 3-4 minutes only.
- Pour the soy sauce mixture over this and cook on medium-high heat till the sauce thickens. This should take about 2 minutes.
- Garnish with chopped green onions and sesame seeds. Serve hot.
