How To Stir Fry

You must have often come across the term 'stir fry' while reading cooking recipes, especially the ones that have Asian origin. Stir-frying is basically a cooking technique that is following in the Asian countries. It is used for cooking meat and vegetables quickly, in such a way that they retain their original texture as well as flavor. The process involves the use of a wok or a pan, in which the food items are given a quick sauté, over high heat. At times, the sauté is followed by a brief steam, in a flavored sauce. In case you want to learn the complete process of stir frying, step by step, make use of the tips provided below.

How To Stir Fry

The first thing that you will need for stir frying anything will be a nonstick or carbon-steel wok or pan.
Before you begin to stir-fry, prepare all the ingredients. Cut the meat, chop the vegetables and make the sauces.
While chopping food items, try to keep the pieces small and of the small size. This is because for stir frying is done on high heat and only if the pieces are small, will they be able to get cooked through, without burning.
Learn the cooking times of different meats and vegetables. While stir frying the food items, you will stagger additions depending on the time each of them takes to cook. The longer the time required for cooking, the earlier a food item will be added.
Start the stir frying process by placing the pan on flame. After it gets hot, add oil.
When the oil gets hot, add the spices, such as ginger and garlic. Stir-fry for a few seconds, or until a faint smell emanates.
Add the other ingredients, turn by turn, as per their approximate cooking time. Example - add onions first and stir-fry for about 2 minutes, then add cauliflower florets and stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes.
After the food gets cooked approximately two-thirds, add the sauces.
If you think that the food items will take more than a few minutes to cook completely, lower the flame and cover the pan.
If the food items seem like they will get cooked within a couple of minutes, continue to stir-fry.
After a few minutes, your dish will be ready.

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