Broccoli and Mushroom Stir-Fry | Healthy Stir-Fry Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Should you cook broccoli before stir-frying? ›

Do you have to boil broccoli before stir-frying? Whilst you don't have to, I prefer to. A quick boil in hot water, or a steam, will softened up the stem a little, making it tender before adding to the hot wok. This way the stem will be a little more tender, but the broccoli will retain some crunch.

Recipe FAQs

Broccoli is a nutrition powerhouse high in fiber, iron and vitamins A and C. It also offers a decent amount of potassium and folate—two nutrients most folks don't get nearly enough of. Sautéing broccoli helps it retain most of its nutrients, which is a major benefit over boiling.

To prepare vegetables for stir-frying, blanching is the perfect way to jump-start the cooking process, especially for dense vegetables like broccoli or cauliflower (which usually take a while to stir-fry and often get soggy).

Sautéing and stir-frying—The most common question I get on this topic is how to sauté or stir-fry without butter or oil. The trick is to use small amounts of water or broth, adding just a small amount (1 to 2 tablespoons) at a time. Do this as often as needed to cook and brown the food, without steaming it.

So many different oils, the good news is you can stick with what you know – canola is great! The best oils for stir frys are the oils with the higher smoke points. These tend to be the “thinner” oils such as peanut, grapeseed or canola.

Yes, stir fry vegetables are a great option for weight loss. Stir-frying is a low-calorie cooking method that helps to retain the nutrients in the vegetables while also providing a delicious and flavourful meal. The key to making a healthy stir fry is to use fresh vegetables and lean proteins.

It's a great way to use up bits of vegetables you don't know what to do with, and to get a big dose of colorful veggies into your diet! We call this an “everyday”stir-fry, because it's such a flexible recipe, you could eat it every day, and still have variety.

The first is to cook your protein and your vegetable separately, and combine them only after both are fully cooked. A second rule of thumb for stir-frying: Choose one vegetable per stir-fry. Finally, always remember to add liquid only after everything is more or less finished cooking.

According to Food & Wine, ketchup is the ultimate way to take the flavor of homemade stir fry up a level, thanks to its sweet and sour flavor profile. It just might be the easiest cooking hack to elevate your home cooking to that of your favorite take-out.

Do you add stir-fry sauce before or after? ›

Once the meat is done cooking, add the vegetables to the pan. If you are using fresh vegetables, you will need to stir them around for 4-5 minutes so they start cooking before you add your sauce. When they are starting to feel tender, but still have a lot of bite to them, add the sauce.

Add water.

If your meat and veggies are starting to stick to the pan or wok, add some water to loosen them up. You can also add a splash of chicken stock or vegetable broth for additional flavor—especially if you are not using a heavy stir-fry sauce.

Can water be used instead of oil when cooking vegetables for a stir fry? Not if you want a good (classic) stir fry. It could be done if you're craving it and are out of oil but you'd essentially be steaming instead of frying your vegetables granting a pretty different result with less bite, and less flavor.

According to a study from the University of California, Davis, even olive oils with the most phenols had a smoke point higher than 400°F. Since most stovetop cooking (and even frying) occurs around 350°F, you can absolutely use olive oil for sautéing and stir-frying.

It's best to blanch broccoli before stir frying since they need some time to thoroughly cook through. Blanching will help the stems soften so they're nice and tender after stir frying.

Broccoli can be eaten raw, but blanching it quickly in boiling water helps give it a more crisp-tender texture and bring out its flavor. Broccoli can also be steamed, sautéed, and roasted. You could even throw long spears on the grill!

Many recipes call for crisper, more dense vegetables to be blanched, especially before stir-frying. There are several reasons for doing this: It helps seal in the color, flavor and nutrients of the vegetables. (Green vegetables turn a wonderful bright green when blanched).

The Chinese broccoli needs to cook as fast as possible, so that the nutrients and color don't have as much opportunity to leach out into the water. It's best to start with as much boiling water as you can. Restaurants serve amazingly green and crunchy Chinese broccoli because they use huge amounts of boiling water.