Great Stir Fry

The art of stir frying is one of the oldest ways of cooking, now considered an art due to its simple gourmet recipe method of combining protein and vegetables to yield that succulent, delightful and fantastic flavor complete with aromatics and fragrance. Its combination of colors can be achieved through choices of vegetables that can greatly improve its presentation.

Through the years, this ancient Oriental cooking technique has become very popular globally due to the success in Oriental Cuisines throughout the world. People have learned to love Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese and Thai cooking, all utilizing the stir fry technique. Common to these countries are specially prepared sauces that can now be bought in Oriental stores that add flavor and aroma to the dishes. To capture the taste of stir frying, we may have soy sauce, fish sauce, hoisin sauces, oyster sauce, sesame oil, chili oil for heat and many more.

Here is an all time favorite recipe for stir fry that you can easily prepare at home to surprise your family on an ordinary weekday night. THE SQUID STIR FRY RECIPE is a simple recipe that can easily be learned and done in your home kitchen. Let us start cooking then.

INGREDIENTS:

250 grams of squid or calamari, already cleaned 

3 tablespoons of vegetable oil (preferred olive oil)

2 to 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped finely

1 centimeters of gingerroot, peeled and cut into matchsticks

1/2 to 1 long red chilli, chopped

1/2 loofa gourd, peeled and halved lengthways, then sliced diagonally into 3 millimeters

Without the gourd, you can use 1 cucumber, peeled and quartered lengthways then sliced them diagonal into 3 millimeters

2 tablespoons of fermented black beans already washed and drained and then chopped them roughly (don’t use the sauce)

1 teaspoon light soy sauce

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

1 tablespoon shaoxing rice wine

1/4 tablespoon sesame oil

1/4 teaspoon sugar 

1 to 2 teaspoon corn flour plus 1 tablespoon cold water, mixed them until smooth and corn flour is dissolved into a slurry (Note: Use this mixture only if the sauce is not thick enough)

6 to 7 spring onions, use only the green part and cut them into 4 centimeters long batons

THE PROCEDURE:

To prepare the squid Asian style, lay the squid or the calamari tube flat in a chopping board. Slide the knife into the tube and slice down one side. Open the tube so it sits flat open, with the inside facing up. Then very carefully score your knife to make diagonal slits into the flesh about three millimeters apart. Then repeat the procedure on a perpendicular angle so you can create a lattice or web like effect. Then cut the squid into approximately four centimeter squares. Set them aside for stir frying.

Starting the stir frying, heat a wok or a large skillet on medium high heat over your American stove. Add the vegetable oil and wait till it starts to smoke. Then you can saute the garlic and the ginger until they turn golden brown. Add the chilli and the squid to the wok and stir fry the squid pieces and watch them curl up. 

Then add the loofa gourd or the continental cucumber, the black beans, the soy sauce, the shaoxing rice wine, the oyster sauce, the sesame oil the sugar and the spring onions. Stir and toss them to combine for another 20 to 30 seconds until the loofa gourd is tender.

Add more spring onions and toss very briefly to mix them. Serve them immediately while they are hot. Best with white cooked rice.