Stir Fry Success (ingredients, chicken, celery, carrots)

[oregonwoodsmoke]

Yes! Big success.

There is an issue with stir fry on an electric stove. You get a small circle of heat at the bottom of the pan. Not ideal. Better than doing without stir fry, but not perfect.

I bought a large Circulon wok with a long handle on it. The gas barbecue has a side burner on it. I turned that up high and placed the wok on it. It got the pan blistering hot and hot all the way up the sides, because the fire was going up the sides.

Of course everything has to be cut and ready to go. Wow, did that work good and I turned out a perfectly done stir fry with crunchy vegetables with excellent color.

Next time, though, I need to prepare more sauce. I've gotten used to having a lot of liquid from the veggies cooking and in this set up, the veggies were fast seared, didn't sweat, and whatever juice there was evaporated off. So I could have added more liquid.

Garlic, fresh ginger, onion, slivered New York steak, broccoli, red pepper, water chestnuts, mushrooms and garnished with cashews. Sauce is chicken broth, soy sauce, rooster sauce, sesame oil, a tiny glug of dry sherry, and corn starch.

[Nite Ryder]

I suspect everyone has their own recipe. I use red wine, Teriyaki sauce, Oyster sauce, Soy sauce for liquid. Sometimes I add some beef broth in addition to those other sauces I just mentioned. I use small sliced strips of beef, and chopped vegetables consisting of carrots, onions, celery, minced garlic, broccoli, and cabbage. I also add sliced mushrooms and yakisoba noodles. Usually I marinate the beef in teriyaki sauce for a couple hours before I start the cooking process. The cabbage is the last thing I add to the wok. Taste is usually pretty consistent and is similar to what I get at our local Mongolian Grill. My wife chops the vegetables while I slice the beef and I'm the one that starts the cooking process and adds the veggies, etc.

[Dirt Grinder]

I have a 65,000 BTU outdoor wok burner - it's way too hot to use inside. It can really get the wok heated-up and is great for getting that true wok hei flavor and aroma. I also let the fire (Dragon's Breath) come into the wok a few times and stir the flame into the dish.

[North Beach Person]

I'd tell you to get an electric wok:



We've had ours for 30 years anyway. Exactly this one.

[Dirt Grinder]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

I'd tell you to get an electric wok...

Nope - you can't get authentic wok hei flavor in an electric "wok."

[Nite Ryder]

Originally Posted by Dirt Grinder

Nope - you can't get authentic wok hei flavor in an electric "wok."

Probably doesn't get hot enough for one thing. I have a wok pan that is made by Weber to fit over one of their kettle grills, it works well, but of course has to be used outside. It measures about 19" in diameter, so is useful when you are doing a big stir fry.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

Originally Posted by Nite Ryder

..........so is useful when you are doing a big stir fry.

I always do a big stir fry, whether I intend to or not. A tiny little bit of this, a few of those, not much of anything, and I still end up with an enormous amount of stir fry.

Fortunately, it is almost all vegetables and my family just stuffs ourselves with no harm no foul.

[mrs.cool]

That's a great idea! I have a gas burner on my gas grill as well, I never thought of using my wok on it. I'm going to try this for sure!

[mrs.cool]

You still use the oil though, right?

[Dirt Grinder]

Originally Posted by mrs.cool

You still use the oil though, right?

I do - that's how I get that unique wok-hei flavor and aroma. I get it to the point that it starts to get ripples - then I start tossing-in ingredients.