Stir-Fry Hostel Style

The aroma of garlic and ginger filled the air of our hostel kitchen as it sizzled in this stir-fry. By far better than any stir-fry we’ve had on the road in South America, this recipe is a go-to when we want something scrumptious for diner. We use quite a bit of ginger in this recipe, if you don’t like ginger, you can omit it. Use more garlic in its place.

Ingredients
300g Vegetables (e.g. carrots, onions, broccoli, green onions, bell peppers)
100g Protein (e.g. beef, chicken, fish, shrimp, scallops)
3 tablespoons oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon wine (white or red optional)

Sauce Ingredients
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons water
1 Tablespoon white wine or water
3 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
1 teaspoon sugar

Tools
Kitchen Knife
Cutting Board
Small dish or cup for sauce
Bowl for marinating meat
Pot with tight fitting Lid
Large Frying Pan

Directions

Sauce
Combine all sauce ingredients in small dish and mix well. Set aside while you prepare the rest of the stir-fry.

Stir Fry
1) Cook your rice while you prepare the vegetables and protein.
2) Cut beef into thin slices (as thin as possible) and place in dish with soy sauce and wine to marinate.
3) Chop vegetables thin. (use a different cutting board than for the meat to avoid food poisoning)
4) Heat pan on high heat and add 2 tablespoons of oil. Allow oil to heat up for 1-2 minutes.
5) Once oil is hot, add the protein, cook it till it’s almost done. For beef this should only 1-2 minutes, for shrimp until they are pink about 1 minute. Remove protein from pan and place on a plate while you stir-fry the vegetables.
6) After removing the protein, allow pan to heat up again, and add more oil if necessary. Add vegetables and allow to cook for 2 minutes, until they are still crispy, but a bit tender.
7) Push vegetables aside to clear a place on the pan for the garlic and ginger, add a tablespoon of oil to the clear place on the pan and add garlic and ginger to the oil, allow to sizzle for 10 seconds. Once you smell the ginger and garlic, mix them in with the vegetables. (this will prevent them from burning)
8) Add protein to stir-fry and let all ingredients warm together for 1-2 minutes.

Serve immediately over rice! Enjoy!

- If using beef, chill it in the freezer for about an hour to make it easier to cut with the dull hostel knife

- Separate vegetables by cooking times. Carrots will take the longest, followed by onions, then green peppers, etc. This will make for the best stir-fry. All the vegetables crisp, but still tender.

- If using broccoli, boil it for 2-3 minutes beforehand to cook it before stir-frying. If you have a microwave, put the broccoli and a tablespoon or two of water into a covered dish and microwave for 2 minutes.