Recipe Review: Stir Fry Vegetables with Garlic, Ginger, Lime

Thai flavors are fast becoming one of my absolute most favorite dinner experiences and we’re building quite the Thai repertoire here at the Cove.  I’m learning to make quick work of chopping fresh veggies so that Thom can quickly add them to a hot wok.  Having the ingredients chopped and at-the-ready makes for a quickly put together meal.

This recipe, a Thai stir fry, is as tasty as it is quick and easy to prepare.  The stir fry is easily adapted to whatever veggies you have in the ‘fridge, and the sauce is simple.  Admittedly, the sauce ingredients may not be staples in your household if you don’t do a lot of Thai or Asian cooking, but once you start building your supply of these ingredients you’ll be all set to throw together any Thai stir fry.  And,  your taste buds will thank you!

Ingredient Notes:  We had all on hand except for the fresh veggies and coconut milk but it was easy to add them to our grocery list and work them into other meals for the week. An awesome advantage to this simple, quick recipe is that you can throw in whatever veggies you have on hand.

Method Notes:  Thom uses his well-seasoned wok that he’s had for at least 20 years.  Most stir frys are cooked on high heat for a short period of time, but this method calls for sauteing the veggies in the sauce at medium-high heat.  If not using a wok, cast iron would be the next best thing or you could even use a non-stick fry pan since it’s not cooked at high heat {it’s not recommended to cook non-stick on high}.

Again, having the veggies chopped and sauce made in advance is the key to getting this dish to the table.  Want the veggies more tender?  Chop them smaller.

The Review:  We’ll definitely be making this again and again.  The flavor was very Thai: sweet and spicy with a refreshing lime/ginger flavor lightening up the creamy sauce.  We served it over white rice which soaked up the sauce.  My favorite vegetable for this stir fry is broccoli and we added a chopped jalepeno for added kick.

Want to stock your pantry for Thai cooking?  Consider these key ingredients:

Coconut milk
Fish Sauce
Green onions
Limes or lime juice
Ginger  {we buy a chunk and freeze it, cutting off what we need per recipe}
Soy sauce
Lemon Grass
Unsalted peanuts

{btw, most of these are substitutes for more exotic ingredients not available in Arkansas {big frown face} ie: Lime/Lime juice for kaffir lime leaves}