A quick stir fry always is a go-to option for a dinner on busy nights. Although I have never been to China and had a real traditional one, I am obsessed with the ones I have had and made. I love how versatile they are and how creative one can be with them since always having the same can be boring after a while. Like this one, it is definitely not your average one, nope, but it is a DREAM! And super super quick!
What is stir fry?
Stir fry actually is a Chinese cooking technique where food is prepared at high heat, continuously stirring and there for frying it quickly. Nowadays stir fry is a term with which one often refers to a dish rather than a cooking technique. The dish consists of vegetables sautéed with some sort of meat, seafood, tofu or tempeh all covered in a tasty sauce and served over rice or noodles or even another grain like quinoa.
What’s special about this dish?
Usually stir fry is prepared with strips of meat or cubes of tofu. But in this dish we are switching it up and using minced meat. Firstly, it is a nice way to switch thighs up and make it different once in a while and secondly it soaks up the sauce super well, which makes the dish really tasty!
Also, in regular stir fries you can find a bunch of different vegetables, including lots of greens. But here we only use two different ones. That helps to focus on their flavor and to also mane non veggie lovers be obsessed with this dish! But if you still feel like it, go ahead and add in a handful of spinach!
Is stir fry healthy?
It actually is pretty healthy! But obviously, it still depends on what you are using. When prepared with something like chicken breast or tofu it actually is healthy but when it‘s made with something like pork belly or fatty meat, it loads up on calories and fats.
Which makes me come to the next point: fat. Stir fries usually are prepared with lots of oil because that is common in the asian cuisine. While oil definitely is not unhealthy (unless you prepare it with an oil that gets poisonous at high temperatures such as olive oil) it comes with a bunch of calories, which you should be aware of.
The last point you should look out for is the soy sauce. Try to use one that is sodium reduced because a lot of sodium also is bot healthy but pretty common.
How to make it healthier
Try to add in as many veggies as possible and choose a type of protein that does not pack a lot of fat and use a soy reduced soy sauce. If you want to make it super healthy you can even serve it with whole grain rice or noodles.
Substitutes:
Bell Pepper/ Carrots – veggies you have on hand/ in the fridge
Ground chicken – any other ground meat or textured vegetable protein
Egg noodles – ramen, soba noodles, rice noodles
I really love to make this dish because it is something the whole family loves and it is really versatile. Plus, it comes together in less than 20 minutes and is healthy! Perfect for busy weeks! I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Happy cooking,
Enjoy,
Katie // Une Petite Cusinière
Red pepper and carrot egg noodle stir fry with saucy mince
Saucy and juicy mince on top of soft noodles with crunchy veggies. A dream. Not your normal stir fry but a good one with a nice twist to it.
What you will need
- 500 g ground beef
- 250 g egg noodles
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 yellow/orange bell pepper
- 3-4 carrots
- 1 tbsp oil
for the sauce:
- 4 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 3 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 cm ginger
- 1 chili (optional but really good)
for garnish:
- 2 spring onions finely slices
- fresh cilantro
- some sesame seeds
- thinly sliced carrots
- some lime wedges
How to
-
Remove the core from the bell peppers. Cut the rest into about 0,5cm thick slices. Peel the carrots and also cut them into thin sticks.
-
Heat up the oil in a wok pan or a non-stick pan. Once hot add the vegetables and fry on high heat for about 1 minute, then turning it to medium high for another 2-3 minutes.
-
Add the grounf beef and fry on high heat for about 4-5 minutes, gently mixing through, so everything is well combined and the meat is evenly browned.
-
Add all of the ingredients for the sauce into a food processor and blend until combined. If you do not have a food processor mix everything in a bowl and grate the garlic and ginger into it.
-
Prepare the noodles according to package instructions. Add the sauce to the stir fry and let it simmer on low heat for about 3 minutes. Drain the noodles and add them to the stir fry. Mix until combined and the noodles have soaked up the sauce.
-
Serve in bowls and garnish with the fresh spring onions, cilantro, carrots, sesame seeds and lime. Enjoy!