The Everything Stir-Fry Cookbook Part 31

Serves 2 to 3 4 ounces dried rice vermicelli cup water 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce 2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry teaspoon chile paste, or to taste 2 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil 1 teaspoon minced garlic 1 carrots, cut into -inch slices 1 teaspoon minced ginger 1 green bell pepper, cut into bite-sized chunks 2 blocks pressed tofu (about 7 ounces), drained and cut into -inch cubes 1 tablespoon soy sauce

Serves 2 to 4 pound flank or sirloin steak, cut across the grain into thin strips 1 tablespoon light soy sauce Black pepper to taste 1 teaspoons cornstarch, divided cup plus 1 tablespoon water, divided 1 tablespoons oyster sauce 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce 2 teaspoons granulated sugar teaspoon chile paste, or to taste 2 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil, divided 1 teaspoon minced garlic teaspoon minced ginger pound firm tofu, drained, cut into 1-inch cubes 2 green onions, finely chopped Tofu with Beef You can use this sauce whenever you're preparing a beef stir-fry. Serve this dish with basic stir-fried noodles (page 200) for a complete meal.

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1. Place the beef strips in a bowl and add the light soy sauce, black pepper, and teaspoon cornstarch. Marinate the beef for 15 minutes.

2. Combine cup water, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, granulated sugar, and chile paste in a bowl. In a separate bowl, dissolve 1 teaspoons cornstarch into 1 tablespoon water. Set aside.

3. Heat a wok or skillet over medium-high heat until it is nearly smoking. Add 1 tablespoon oil. When the oil is hot, add half the garlic and ginger. Stir-fry for 10 seconds, then add the beef. Let sear briefly, then stir-fry the beef until it is no longer pink and is nearly cooked through.

4. Push the beef to the sides of the pan. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in the middle. Add the remainder of the garlic and ginger. Stir-fry for 10 seconds, then add the tofu cubes. Stir-fry the tofu cubes for 1 to 2 minutes, until they begin to brown.

5. Push the tofu to the sides and add the sauce in the middle. Bring to a boil. Stir the cornstarch and water mixture and add to the sauce, stirring to thicken. Stir in the green onions. Stir-fry for 1 to 2 more minutes to mix together all the ingredients. Serve hot.

Pairing Tofu with Meat Don't feel you need to limit your use of tofu to vegetarian dishes. In Asia, tofu is frequently paired with meat to provide an interesting contrast in texture. A well-known dish combining the two is Grandmother Bean Curd, or Mapo Doufu (page 189), where tofu and ground pork are stir-fried with fermented black beans, chile paste, and other spicy seasonings. Don't feel you need to limit your use of tofu to vegetarian dishes. In Asia, tofu is frequently paired with meat to provide an interesting contrast in texture. A well-known dish combining the two is Grandmother Bean Curd, or Mapo Doufu (page 189), where tofu and ground pork are stir-fried with fermented black beans, chile paste, and other spicy seasonings.

Appendix A: Glossary of Basic Cooking Terms Used in Stir-Frying Al dente An Italian term literally meaning "to the teeth." Al dente Al dente is used to describe the state to which pasta should be cooked. Pasta that is cooked al dente has no taste of flour remaining, but there is still a slight resistance when bitten and it is still slightly chewy. Like Italian pasta, Chinese egg noodles should be cooked al dente. is used to describe the state to which pasta should be cooked. Pasta that is cooked al dente has no taste of flour remaining, but there is still a slight resistance when bitten and it is still slightly chewy. Like Italian pasta, Chinese egg noodles should be cooked al dente.

Aromatics In stir-frying, garlic and ginger are frequently added to the hot oil before the other ingredients, in order to flavor the oil.

Blanch Blanching is a means of cooking food by immersing it in boiling water. In Chinese cooking, thicker, denser vegetables such as broccoli are often briefly blanched prior to being added to a stir-fry. This helps ensure that all the vegetables in the stir-fry finish cooking at the same time. After blanching, the cooked food is immediately placed in cold water to stop the cooking process. Always drain blanched foods thoroughly before adding to a stir-fry.

Chop Chopping consists of cutting food into small pieces. While chopped food doesn't need to be perfectly uniform, the pieces should be roughly the same size.

Deep-fry Deep-frying is a means of cooking food by immersing it briefly in hot oil. Along with stir-frying and steaming, deep-frying is one of the three main Chinese cooking techniques. In Chinese cuisine, some recipes call for food to be deep-fried first before it is added to the other ingredients in a stir-fry.

Deglaze Deglazing the pan consists of using liquid to clean out the browned bits of drippings left over from cooking meat in a pan. Adding liquid (usually broth or alcohol) to the pan makes it easier to lift up the browned bits with a spatula. The flavored liquid is then used in a sauce or gravy. While deglazing the pan isn't a standard Chinese technique, it can be used in stir-fry recipes such as Speedy Beef Stew (page 92) and Pork Chops with Burgundy Mushrooms (page 162).

Dice Dicing consists of cutting food into small cubes, usually -inch in size or less. Unlike chopping, the food should be cut into even-sized pieces.

Drain Draining consists of drawing off the liquid from a food. In stir-frying, washed vegetables are drained thoroughly before stir-frying so that excess water is not added to the pan, while meat is drained after stir-frying to remove any excess oil. Either a colander (a perforated bowl made of metal or plastic) or paper towels can be used to drain food.

Dredge Dredging consists of coating food with a dry ingredient such as flour, bread crumbs, or potato starch before frying. Spices are frequently added to the coating for extra flavor. Dredging food before frying gives it a nice, crispy coating.

Julienne To julienne food (also called matchstick cutting) consists of cutting it into very thin strips about 1 to 2 inches long, with a width and thickness of about[image] inch. Both meat and vegetables can be julienned. inch. Both meat and vegetables can be julienned.

Marinate Marinating food consists of coating it in a liquid prior to cooking. Stir-fry recipes with meat, seafood, and poultry nearly always include a marinade, both to tenderize the food and lend extra flavor. Cornstarch is frequently added to help seal in the other ingredients - always add the cornstarch last unless the recipe states otherwise.

Matchstick Head To prepare matchstick heads, julienne the food and then cut it crosswise into small cubes the approximate size of matchstick heads.

Mince Mincing consists of cutting food into very small pieces. In general, minced food is cut into smaller pieces than chopped food.

Sauce A sauce is a liquid that is added to lend flavor to a dish. In stir-fries, a sauce is frequently added in the final stages of cooking.

Sear Searing meat consists of quickly browning it over high heat before finishing cooking it by another method. Searing meat browns the surface and seals in the juices. In stir-fry dishes, the meat is briefly seared after it is added to the pan, and then finished by stir-frying.

Shred Shredding food consists of cutting it into thin strips that are usually thicker than a julienne cut. Meat, poultry, cabbage, lettuce, and cheese can all be shredded.

Simmer Simmering food consists of cooking it in liquid at a temperature just below the boiling point.

Stir-fry Stir-frying consists of cooking food by placing it in a small amount of heated oil and moving it around quickly at high heat. The main difference between sauteing and stir-frying is that food for stir-fries is cut up into uniform pieces to make it cook more quickly.

Appendix B: Online Shopping Resources Pacific Rim Gourmet [image]www.pacificrimgourmet.com Launched in 1998, Pacific Rim Gourmet specializes in providing harder-to-find ingredients used in Asian cooking. They carry a full range of woks and wok accessories, from carbon steel and cast iron woks to wok covers, rings, tempura racks, and bamboo wok brushes for cleaning your wok. Pacific Rim Gourmet also carries an extensive selection of Asian cooking ingredients, including sauces, marinades, noodles, exotic rices and flours, and batter mixes.

Oriental Pantry [image]www.orientalpantry.com Based in the United States, Oriental Pantry has an excellent supply of ingredients commonly used in stir-frying, from sauces to beans, noodles, and vegetables. They carry a number of prepackaged mixes for popular Asian specialties such as hot and sour soup and Philippine adobo sauce for those nights when you're really in a hurry.

Wing Yip [image]www.wingyip.com Based in the United Kingdom, Wing Yip has recently launched an online shopping site to accompany its stores located throughout Britain. They carry a wide variety of ingredients used in stir-frying, including their own line of products. Although they carry a few specialty items such as shiitake mushrooms and sushi ginger, the focus is primarily on Chinese cuisine.

Earthy Delights [image]www.earthy.com Based in Michigan, Earthy Delights specializes in supplying specialty foods, from mushrooms and gourmet cheeses to fine oils. They supply a wide range of sauces and seasonings used in Asian stir-fries, from soy sauce to sesame seeds and dried chili peppers.

The Wok Shop [image]www.wokshop.com Located in the heart of San Francisco's Chinatown district, this family-run business has been in operation for over thirty-five years. Their store is an invaluable resource for anyone who doesn't have easy access to an Asian market. In addition to their line of carbon steel woks, cleavers, and other basic equipment, they carry a number of harder-to-find utensils such as tempura racks, Chinese spatulas, and wire mesh skimmers.