Explore. Cook. Eat.

Man, I have been away from this blog for way too long. The beginning of the year has been very busy for me. First I was looking for a new job, and now I am working a new job. I also broke my computer (for what seems like the umpteenth time) and that has really slowed my blog process down. I don’t want to digress, however, because that is not what I want to talk about in this post.

What I DO want to write about tonight is Stir Fry. I promised myself this year that I was going to explore Asian cooking a little more. I love Asian flavors, but I don’t always know what to do with them. I do have a couple of tried and true recipes that I turn to, but I am at a loss regarding how to really diversify myself. Then, like a shinning beacon landing in my mail box, came my very first issue of the Food Network Magazine, which my wonderful boyfriend got me a subscription to for Christmas.

I didn’t even know that Food Network had a magazine, so I had no idea what was in store for me. Let me tell you, it really over whelmed me. I mean, it’s a WHOLE magazine that is full of recipes and cooking advice. I seriously didn’t know what to do with myself. The cover picture is of a stir fry and I was instantly intrigued by this recipe. When I turned to the page with the article in it, the title was 11,375 Stir-Fries! What?!?! How can there be 11,375 stir fry recipes in ONE cooking magazine, but then you look to the next page and see the beauty of the whole thing. Its a mix an match ingredient list. Perfect, I thought to myself, this is exactly what I have been looking for. Basically, you pick  a protein, some vegetables, a sauce, and you’re on your way. What is great about this is that you can pretty much use what you have on hand as far as vegetables and meats are concerned when you’re not sure what to make for dinner that night. There are a few ingredients in the sauces you may have to pre plan for, but even the sauces use a lot of the same ingredients: so, once you have them, you can keep them on hand for all the variations.

Anyway, over the next weeks or months I am going to feature different stir fries. Some will be inspired by this article, and some may be from other places (I do have a mean stir fry I already make and I’ll have to feature it in one of my posts). I will also research and tell you a bit more about stir fry, its history, and some general tips for cooking it. But those will have to wait for another post because this one is getting a bit long.

So, now on to the recipe:

Stir Fry Test One: Pork, Bok Choy, Mushrooms, and Onions.

What you’ll need:

Sauce, Mix together:

• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp Rice wine
• 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar

Other ingredients:

• 3/4 lb pork chops cut small strips
• 1 egg white
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 head bok choy chopped
• 1/2 a medium red onion sliced
• 80z mushrooms (I just use one package from the grocery store) sliced
• 2 heads garlic minced
• 2 tbsp grated ginger
• additional salt
• additional sugar
• Vegetable or Peanut oil (I used Canola)

First marinate your meat in the vinegar, cornstarch, and egg white (first 3 ingredients) for about an hour.  While that is marinating, prep all your ingredients. Get your sauce ready in a bowl, chop all your veggies. Grate your ginger and mince your garlic.

Now we are ready to cook.

Heat your wok (or you may use a skillet) over medium heat. Add about 1/4 inch oil (I just plopped a couple tablespoons in there). Drain the marinade,  add the pork, and stir until white and no pink is showing (depending on how small you cut your pieces, I would say that should take no more than 2-3 minutes). Remove the pork from the pan and wipe it down. Turn the heat up to high. Next add 2 tbsp of oil back into the wok. Add the garlic, ginger, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of sugar.  Cook for only 30 seconds. Then add the vegetables. It says to add from the ones that take the longest to cook to the ones that cook the shortest. I added the mushrooms and cooked them for a 1-2 minutes, then I added the onions for another minute, and finally the bok choy for another minute or so. Finally, add the pork and sauce back into the wok and cook for about another 3 minutes.

The sauce with this recipe is very light and it really lets the flavors in the vegetables and meat through, so make sure that you are using really fresh ingredients. Everything was cooked great, the bok choy still had a crunch to it, and the dish looked so pretty and uncluttered. You can try different meats too; just marinate them the same way or switch out a vegetable or two. It’s very versatile, and it comes together super fast once you are cooking. Then you can just slap it over some rice, couscous, or even quinoa and enjoy!

Let me know how you changed this dish up, and look for the next recipe in this series where I’ll use different meats, veggies, and a different sauce!