Matchstick Vegetable Stir-Fry

Vegetable stir-fry is one of the easiest vegetable side dishes out there.  By mixing different vegetable flavors and textures, you undoubtedly get a more interesting side dish.  What I also love about a good vegetable stir-fry is that almost any vegetable can work, so it is super easy to adapt to the likes and dislikes of various family members or dinner guests. Traditional stir-frying is a Chinese cooking technique in which ingredients are fried in a small amount of very hot oil while being stirred in a wok.  The technique began in China and eventually made its way to us.  I remember when stir-fry became popular when I was a kid: my mom came home with a wok to whip up delicious “stir-fry” dinners for me and my sister.  I recall at least one attempt at that; but in New York City, cooking with woks on high heat quickly sets off smoke detectors, thus putting an end to my mother’s stir-fry dreams.

It is thought that wok frying began sometime during the Han Dynasty around 206 B.C. but was originally used for drying grain.  It was not until later, during the Ming Dynasty, that people began using woks to cook food in hot oil.  The wok itself would not become widely used until well into the 20th century, since the cost of oil was too high for most families.

In the world of stir-fry, there are two classic types of techniques: “chao” and “bao“.  Both of these theses use high heat, but chao involves incorporating liquid, which results in softer cooked food.  Bao involves no liquid, which tends to result in crispier items.  The chao technique is more similar to sautéing; high heat, first oil, then ingredients are added in order based on how much cooking time is required, typically proteins first followed by vegetables.  In contrast, the bao technique involves high heat with continual tossing.  Although I don’t use a wok for this recipe, my method is more similar to the chao stir-fry method.  When stir-frying vegetables, I like to make the vegetables thin and as similarly sized as possible, so that everything can be added at the same time and cook more or less equally.

 While I am generally a big vegetable fan, anything can get boring eventually.  Stir-frys are a fantastic way to mix it up and also help introduce newer vegetables into your diet. For this vegetable stir-fry, I went with readily available vegetables that my boys like.  But don’t limit yourself, there are tons of great options out there to consider.  So go ahead and be creative.