Sauces & Jams · By Sharon
Spicy Sweet and Sour Stir-fry (Sauce)
We often have leftover meat we are looking to dress up into a new meal. The Asian flavors in our version of a spicy sweet and sour stir-fry are a go-to for us. I will make the sauce, cut up the veg and meat, and James does the stir-frying — nice division of labor. Many years ago, Phil's first wife, Mai, helped us with Asian cooking, and even put together a Chinese cookbook as a gift for us, including some great spicy Szechuan recipes. James' Mom also served Chinese food that she learned to cook from a Chinese woman who lived in Vauxhall at the Agricultural Research Station. Mom's Chinese feast was a very special meal — James would often ask for it on his birthday, with his favorite soy-sauce Chinese eggs. And now, we have Cindy sharing her amazing Chinese cooking skills. This is an all-in-one sauce that is added just as the various veg are approaching being done in your wok, continuing to heat it until it thickens into a rich glaze. We like this stir-fry quite saucy, so we use this recipe amount for a 3 serving stir-fry, or just 2 if we're really hungry. It's easy to increase the proportions for more servings.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- ¾ cup chicken broth
- ½ cup soy sauce (Kikkoman is our preference)
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup white-wine vinegar or rice-wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp shaved fresh ginger
- 2 tbsp minced fresh garlic
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Method
- 1
Prepare the sauce by combining all the ingredients in a small bowl, and whisking.
- 2
Add some peanut oil and/or sesame oil to wok, heat until hot, and then stir fry your veg (adding longer-cooking veg first, and so on). When veg are still quite firm, add the whisked sauce to the wok and continue heating until the cornstarch has thickened the sauce and it becomes glossy.
- 3
Serve immediately on a bed of rice. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds if desired.
A note from Sharon
We usually have carrots, onions, bell peppers, broccoli, and mushrooms in the fridge, so these are what we typically use for the stir-fry, along with whatever meat we are using ("velveting" beef, chicken, or fish is a helpful Asian technique to keep them moist and tender in the stir-fry). Snow peas are lovely, if we remember to buy them. Adding whole cherry tomatoes right at the end is another option — we love the bright sweet burst of flavor these add!
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