Asparagus Stir-Fry

This asparagus stir-fry reminds me of the ones my dad would make for us as kids. He took Chinese cooking classes at the local community college and would do a version similar to this – using chicken in place of the tofu. We loved it and it was one of the rare ways I would enthusiastically consume green vegetables. So picky. I’ve play fast and loose here with the herbs and vegetables, and tend to put this into recipe rotation the night before going to the farmer’s market. It’s a perfect way to use up any herbs, greens, and vegetables at the end of the week.

Like many stir-fries this version requires a bit of commitment on the front-end – slicing, dicing, and chopping. All completely worth it. Each time an ingredient hits the hot pan, the scent unfurls toward you in an intense bouquet. Just from the small, just absolutely know it’s going to be good. Asparagus and tofu form the base of this ensemble, but it has quite a lot going on beyond that. You get a bite of tang from the lime, heat from the red chiles and fresh ginger, mint and basil cool things down. A touch of hoisin sauce gives you just enough sweetness to balance it all out.

What if I don’t have Hoisin Sauce?

You have other options if you don’t have hoisin sauce on hand, no problem! It’s salty and a bit sweet, so you can do a splash of tamari or soy sauce instead, and sprinkle a touch of sugar (or brown sugar) across the stir-fry. Or skip the sugar and use the soy sauce. You could go even simpler and just salt to taste – skipping the sauces altogether. Basically, you want it to taste good to you. You could also go the no sauce route and finish with some chili crisp.

A few other variations from the comments and people who have cooked this recipe:

Peggy mentions, “I don’t have hoisin on hand, so I used tamari and veg broth with a seaweed/sesame seed mix from Eden Foods. I also added some shiitake for texture, flavor and nutrition. And not having fresh mint or basil, added some dill instead (very little).”
Love the red pepper angle from Kathy B, “Made this last night and it was GREAT! Added some slivered sweet red pepper. Served it with a mix of mahogany and brown rice. Never thought of lime rind and juice for a stir fry and it made all the difference.”
Also noted this version from Tiff, “I substituted fresh squeezed OJ and chopped jalapeño cause that’s what I had on hand and it still turned out great.”

Stir-frying: Keys To Success

Making a great stir-fry is fast, hot, and furious. If you’re new to this style of cooking, I want to re-emphasize a few basic tips.

Prep in advance: get absolutely everything chopped and measured.
Get organized: This might be over the top, but I like to arrange my ingredients near the stove in (roughly) the order they’re going to be added to the pan.
Turn on your fan and/or open a window: This just keeps things from getting too smoky.
Be ready to eat: The last thing you want is for your beautiful stir-fry to sit around steaming. It’s so hot it will continue to cook after you transfer it from the pan. Ideally, you want to serve it as fast as possible for the best experience, texture, and bright flavors. So, set the table and get beverages ready before you start cooking.