GASTRONORMOUS

This is a really easy stir fry that uses frozen vegetables, thereby skipping a lot of the washing, chopping, and prep that causes many people to avoid making stir fry (on weeknights, especially). When I made this the first time, my husband said that he didn’t realize an Asian dish made at home could be this good!

Avoid the frozen stir fry vegetables with sauces and everything included. I like the good quality organic stir fry vegetables that I have seen at both health food stores and super markets (store brand frozen veggies in my experience taste a little water-logged). This recipe calls for Siracha sauce, a Vietnamese chili-garlic sauce available in most big markets. Siracha is a staple condiment in my household–we use it in everything from quesadillas to pasta sauce.

Of course, if you have the time and will, please do use fresh veggies–about 3 cups worth of chopped ones of your choice.

Veggie-peanut Stir Fry

1 package extra firm tofu, or a couple chicken breasts, cubed, or other protein (optional)
peanut or canola oil
1/2 onion, sliced (if there is onion in your stir fry veggies, skip this)
2 cloves of garlic (or more to taste), minced
1 10-12 oz. package of frozen vegetables
1 heaping spoonful of unsweetened peanut butter (chunky or smooth)
2 TB soy sauce
Siracha sauce to taste (I like things spicy, and I use about 1 TB)
1 scant TB honey
couple dashes dark sesame oil
handful of dry roasted peanuts (optional)

If using the tofu, cut into fat sticks, about the size of 3 stacked dice. Place in a single layer on a paper towel-lined plate, put a couple layers of paper towel on top, put another plate on, then weigh down with something very heavy (I use my marble mortar and pestle). If you are adding onion, use this time to slice that and get all your other ingredients at the ready. After about 10 minutes, the tofu should be drained enough.

Heat about a half-inch depth’s worth of oil on the bottom of a wok or very deep frying pan. Once oil is very, very hot, carefully add about half the tofu in a single layer; stand back– it will splatter! Fry for about 3 minutes, until deep golden brown, then flip over (I use tongs) and fry for a couple minutes more. Carefully take tofu out of the oil and drain on paper towels. While tofu is still piping hot, season it with salt and generously with freshly ground pepper. Repeat with second batch.* Turn off the heat and dump out almost all the oil. Be sure to wipe up anything that drips over the side of the pan, especially if you have a gas stove.

[If using meat, simply stir-fry in a very small amount of oil until cooked through. Remove from the pan, and set aside. Then add a few teaspoons of oil to the pan.]

Reheat the wok. Add the onion, garlic, and vegetables. Fry 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently. Now, plop in a big spoonful of peanut butter, and stir in quickly so that it doesn’t burn. Immediately after that is stirred in, add the soy sauce, siracha, and honey. Stir to incorporate. Add a few tablespoons water and continue stirring (if it seems really water, don’t panic–the water will quickly evaporate to create a thick sauce). Taste at this point to see if you want to add more honey, soy sauce, or siracha, to your taste. If it seems dry, add more water as you cook. After you have adjusted the seasonings, add the tofu or meat and sesame oil. Cook about a minute or two longer, stirring constantly. Toss in peanuts, if using, immediately before serving.

Serve over rice, if desired.

Serves two, generously.

*Tofu notes: The oil must be extremely hot. You might test heat by adding just one piece of tofu. If it doesn’t hiss and splatter, the oil isn’t hot enough. If tofu is cooked in oil that isn’t hot enough, it will turn out really oily, rather than crisp on the outside and greaseless on the inside. Frying, esp. things like tofu with a high moisture content, can be very dangerous as the oil can splatter. You might want to consider wearing glasses if you don’t already! It seems like a lot of trouble, but once you get used to the process it is easy, I swear! You can skip this step and add the tofu “raw,” if you’d like. It holds together better if fried first, though. If skipping the frying step, add the tofu earlier in the cooking process, right after before the peanut butter. Baked tofu is denser than regular tofu and would be good in this, but I would avoid the flavored varieties.

This entry was posted on Saturday, March 1st, 2008 at 11:54 pm and is filed under Recipes, Weeknight recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.