Chinese Stir Fry Recipe with Summer Vegetables

I’ve included this authentic Chinese stir-fry recipe as my response to the question “What can I do with all this summer zucchini?” Stir fries are, of course, an easy way to use up whatever vegetables you have left in the refrigerator or overflowing in the garden. I’ve found this recipe to be tasty, very straightforward, and kinda fun when you get a rhythm going!

This recipe is adapted from Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant (aff), an ethnic vegetarian cookbook that is in our family’s top three cookbooks. It’s a great cookbook for hunting out year-round recipes based on seasonal vegetables, in fact. Since it covers regions all over the globe, from the Caribbean to Finland to Africa to China, it seems there’s always a great recipe for us to try that highlights a seasonal veggie. And it’s a great way to go ethnic without having to buy a dozen cookbooks. (As we’re trying to eat more vegetarian these days, our current rule is to try a new Sundays at Moosewood recipe every week!)

Sauce Recipe

1 cup vegetable or chicken stock (avoid msg and “yeast extract”, if possible)
1 tsp honey or agave syrup (low glycemic for diets and diabetics)
1 Tbsp tamari soy sauce
3 tbsp oyster sauce
freshly ground black pepper
1-1/2 Tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbsp cold water before adding

Mix all ingredients together, adding cornstarch last after dissolving in water.

A word on oyster sauce: it’s very difficult to find a clean ingredient list for oyster sauce. Definitely use a brand labeled “oyster sauce”, not “oyster flavored sauce.” Avoid msg, and, hardest to accomplish, try to avoid colorings, especially if you have a history of allergies in your family. We’re using the Kikkoman Restaurant Series Oyster Sauce, which is pretty good. To find something decent, we took a special trip to our local ethnic gourmet store, where we also go for things like unsulphured dried fruit!

Chinese Stir-Fry Recipe

High heat cooking oil
8 oz. seitan or tempeh, sliced into 1/4 thick bite sized pieces
1-1/2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp minced ginger root
1 carrot diagonally sliced
1 zucchini or summer squash diagonally sliced
(On lazy days, I just prep the carrots and squash in the food processor set to julienne)
2 cups or one bunch asparagus, cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup green onions, cut diagonally into 1-1/2 inch pieces
2 cups button mushrooms, halved, or quartered for larger pieces

Prepare the sauce in advance. Coat the bottom of a large pan or wok with oil and heat to medium-high. Stir fry in this order and duration:

• Garlic and ginger — 30 seconds
• Carrots — 1-1/2 minutes
• Mushrooms — 1 minute
• Asparagus — 1 minute
• (Add 2-3 Tbsp water if sticking or scorching.)
• Squash — 1-1/2 minutes

Add sauce and cook until boiling, then stir constantly while thickening, and remove from heat immediately. Don’t be too concerned about the sauce thickening, as cooking too long can cause the cornstarch to burn. Serve immediately over rice.

My apologies for the lack of pictures of our feast, I truly must remember to take pictures for the blog!

Enjoy!

Mama Hope