Top 7 Ingredients to Boost Flavor in Your Stir-Fry Dishes
A stir-fry allows you to enjoy a meal in no time. You can prepare food quickly, as you have a wide variety of ingredients. Occasionally, stir-fry lacks flavor. To get it tasty and packed with flavor, you should use the correct ingredients.
Here, I will highlight 7 ingredients that will make your stir-fries even tastier. They are found at most grocery stores. They contribute flavor, a unique smell, and various colors. They also make stir fry with meats, seafood, and vegetables.
If you enjoy seafood, I recommend Fishcakes and Scallops Stir Fry at the end of the recipe. It blends some of them together and creates a delicious dish.
1. Soy Sauce – The Essential Sauce for Stir Frying
No stir fry is complete without a little soy sauce. It gives food a salty and umami taste. Umami is the feeling of richness you get from good food.
To season your food, use light soy sauce and add dark soy sauce for a rich taste and dark color. Do not put too much soy sauce, as it is salty.
Soy sauce can be mixed with various other seasonings to create a tasty sauce. A small addition of honey or sugar will offset the saltiness.
2. Garlic – Gives Every Dish Its Flavor
Garlic may seem bland, yet it can have a strong effect on a dish. It changes the taste of the dish by giving it a strong aromatic character.
Whenever you cook, use fresh garlic. Before frying, chop or crush the onion. Sauté garlic on medium heat for only a few minutes or just until its smell is released. If you burn it, the taste will be too bitter.
Garlic adds a nice touch to most stir-fry recipes. You can enjoy it with veggies, chicken, beef, or even seafood.
3. Ginger – The Zesty Kick
The taste of ginger is spicy and fresh. It gives the stir-fry a cheerful and lively look. Ginger that is best is fresh, although powder will be fine if that’s what you have.
Wash the ginger, peel it, and chop or grate it. Garlic should be added to the food at an early stage of cooking. Ginger brings a wonderful scent to your kitchen.
Ginger aids with digestion and thus improves your health while making your food taste good.
4. Sesame Oil – The Last Step
Sesame oil should not be used for cooking at a high temperature. You can use it for the final protective layer.
Add a bit of flavoring just after cooking or when you switch off the heat. It gives the dish a rich flavor that makes it more appetizing.
Toasted sesame oil has the most flavor. Even a small gift is appreciated.
5. Fresh Chili – The Element for Heat
Enjoying spicy flavors? In that case, you can’t miss fresh chili. It adds warmth and red color to the meal you are making.
You can use jalapeño, bird’s eye chili, or serrano. If you like the level of heat to be lower, remove as many seeds as you can.
If you prefer less heat, add the chili in the beginning, or for more spice, add it toward the end. If you don’t have fresh chilis, you could use either chili flakes or chili paste as a substitute.
6. Scallions – A Delicious and Crunchy Snack
The mild taste of onion and freshness come from green onions. They add different colors and textures to the garden.
At the end of cooking, sprinkle in some thinly sliced green onions. Both white and green portions can be prepared.
The addition of green onions adds a fresh look to your stir-fry. You can enjoy a little crunch by adding radishes to your food fresh and raw.
7. Oyster Sauce– The Secret Ingredient
It has a thick and sweet-savory taste. It enhances the taste and makes the sauce rich.
Oyster sauce and soy sauce go well together in making a good stir-fry sauce. This seasoning is perfect for dishes made with meat or seafood.
You can use hoisin sauce instead of oyster sauce, but it will be sweeter.
How Can You Prepare These Foods as a Group?
Making your stir-fry sauce can be fast and easy.
- Soy sauce (2 tablespoons) is the first thing you should add.
- Put in 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce.
- Put in a teaspoon of sugar or honey.
- Adding a small amount of liquid can thin out the sauce.
Cook the garlic and ginger in the oil to enhance their flavor. Prepare the main ingredients such as vegetables, fishcakes, or scallops, by stir-frying them. If heat is what you enjoy, use chili. Use sesame oil to coat the bowl and top the dish with green onions.
Make the delicious fishcakes and scallops stir fry that I described and see what you think of the flavor.
If you like to use all these flavorings, try my Fishcakes and Scallops Stir Fry recipe. This dish cooks quickly and has no aftertaste.
My recipe calls for using garlic, ginger, soy sauce, oyster sauce, chili, sesame oil and green onions. You can clearly notice the nice combination of flavors used in the food.
Tips to Make Delicious Stir-Fry
- Get the most taste by using fresh ingredients.
- When you want your vegetables to be done fast and crispy, cook them on high heat.
- Always allow some space between the meat so that it cooks properly.
- Adjust the seasoning while cooking the dish.
- Sauces can be slowly poured in, while it’s much harder to fix a dish that is too salty.
Conclusion
Stir fry can be adapted to fit any taste. Even so, the right ingredients turn it into something great. Enjoy a delicious stir fry every time by including these 7 ingredients.
Mix several ingredients and experiment until you find your favorite stir-fry sauce. For a tasty seafood meal, don’t skip my Fishcakes and Scallops Stir Fry recipe.