Stir-fry is PERFECT for busy weeknights!

High heat & oil. 

That's all you need to make something "stir-fried"

Okay end of post, good talk! 😂

Lol just kidding.

Stir-fry is PERFECT for busy weeknights!

It’s the best, most flavorful one pan meal!

Traditionally the stir fry technique is associated with Asian cuisines, cooked in a really hot wok with a neutral oil.

The key to a traditional stir-fry is prep!

• Having everything sliced, diced, bitesize, and ready to go so that when it comes time to add it to the pan, its there!

• Typically a stir-fry would start by flavoring the hot oil — that could be by adding garlic, ginger, hot peppers, or fresh herbs like basil or mint. Everything else you add to the pan will take on those flavors as well.

• Add in the items that take longest to cook, usually proteins like chicken, pork, or beef.

• Add in veggies (usually, you want them to still be crunchy to help add some texture to the stir-fry).

Story time…

Way back in culinary school…I vividly remember cooking in wok the first time, I was SOOOO NERVOUS because you have to keep everything moving around constantly, while adding in more ingredients. My International Cuisine Chef stood right behind me, and criticized my every move...screaming “You're burning the shit out of it!”

I'm happy to report I did not burn the shit out of anything that day. My stir-fry was bomb! However, that was the ONE and ONLY time I have ever used a legit wok. Something about a large Italian-Bostonian yelling over your shoulder while you cook...just leaves some residual negativity around it.

Okay so like I was saying…

• Move everything around in the wok, and you actually use the sides of the wok to slow the cooking process down. Essentially the base of the wok is where the heat is so the sides are usually cooler in temperature. Seriously, the wok is such a cool kitchen tool!

• After you have everything 95% cooked, you'll add in a sauce.

  • You're probably familiar with the quintessential chicken & broccoli brown sauce? Yeh? Like most sauces that you get, it's thickened with corn starch which is what allows it to perfectly coat every piece food and also gives it that shinny look. Make a super quick chicken and broccoli.

  • The sauce is usually the factor that pulls a stir-fry together...but really it’s all about the process.

In less than 3 minutes (in a traditional wok, with heat on all sides) you'll have an awesome stir-fry. At home…it’s closer to 15 minutes.

”Cool Celestina thanks for telling me all about something I can't make a home because I don't have a wok stove or a wok...”

And then I say...”Don't worry!” You can totally make stir-fry at home regardless of what kind of burner you have! The pan however...may actually be a bit more important.

Let's start with hardware — you need a large pan!

Think surface area!

The more evenly everything will cook, the better. Another reason for a large pan is to avoid over-crowding it.

This is key! You don't want soup!

Okay so we know stir-fry to be mostly Asian...but really anything can be stir-fried.

When you understand the process, you can make anything!

Let's start with a traditional American-Italian dish...Sausage & Peppers. 

You can do this dish a couple of ways, but my favorite is to "stir-fry" it (I still like the peppers & onions to have some crunch to them).

For this, I recommend starting with a low-side, cast-iron pan; or any large, low-side pan will do.

• Drizzle a tiny bit of oil in your cold pan, and use a paper towel to spread it out and sopp up any excess. This is how you avoid a mess, and oil/water splatter.

• Get your pan hot! (If you have a fan over your stove, USE IT). Keep the pan on high.

• Pans hot, add your sliced sausage in the pan. Remember to keep it moving so you don't burn the shit out of it.

  • You want some golden brown color on the sausage.

  • Remove the sausage from the pan.

• Add a few teaspoons of olive oil to the pan, get it hot. Keep the heat on high.

• Add in your veggies — garlic, onion, peppers. And add your salt early on (to help release the liquid quickly).

*please don't over crowd the pan...you'll get soup not stir-fry.

If you only have tiny pans...you'll have to do this in batches, or just order in. 😂

Keep everything moving!!!!

• Okay once they are 90% cooked to where you want them (they can still be a little al dente, or cooked to flop...totally up to you). Add the sausages back in.

• Add in Italian herbs like rosemary, basil, oregano, thyme, and parsley, or just Italian Seasoning.

• *Optional — you can add a sauce (like a real stir-fry) like a cooked tomato sauce.

  • If your pan is hot enough it should bubble vigorously & reduce pretty immediately.

So stir-fry usually requires A LOT of prep....I mean if you're feeding sausage and peppers to a family of 4 you'll probably have to cut 6-8 sausages, 2-3 onions, 3-4 cloves of garlic, and 5-6 peppers.

Ugh that sounds SOOO time consuming!!!

Let's make the same thing, but cut out all the prep! It looks a little different this time!

No Prep American-Italian dish...Sausage & Peppers

Here is an example of fajita veggies with chicken over rice…traditionally Mexican flavors done in a stir-fry style! See…ANYTHING can be a stir-fry!

• Start with the same pan, oil procedure, and cook your sausage first.

• Instead of adding oil back into the pan to cook the veggies, just let the pan get screaming hot.

• Add in the frozen peppers & onions (again please don't over crowd the pan).

• Move them around!

  • Unfortunately, with frozen veggies there isn't really an option for al dente so "cook" them until they are just thawed.

• Add in 2-3 teaspoons of olive oil, and toss them around.

• Then add the sausage back in.

• Season, add spices, and optional tomato sauce.

You’re done! And you didn’t have to cut a ton of veggies!

Check out the quick video for the No Prep Sausage & Peppers!

Try making a No Prep Shrimp Stir-Fry — it comes together in 5 minutes!

Frozen veggies can be a life saver, especially if you're particularly opposed to prepping or you're just really busy!

You just need to know how to use them so that they work for you, not against you...they can make your dinners quick, easy, and delicious!

Remember that you can use the methods I talked about to MAKE ANYTHING!!!