[Sca-cooks] OP: stir fry question

Laura C. Minnick lcm at jeffnet.org
Thu Jun 7 17:10:22 PDT 2007


At 08:19 AM 6/7/2007, you wrote:

> > However, I was shocked to see that the recipes recommended
> > blanching the
> > stir-fry veggies before stir-frying. My mom learned to stir-fry
> > from one
> > of those half-size wok cookbooks in the 1970s and she taught me, so
> > what
> > do I know? Still, I've never blanched a stirfry veg in my life.
> >
> > Is this really common practice, or is this some wierd survival of the
> > 1950s pre-blanching of everything by trained chefs that Elizabeth
> > David
> > complains about in _An Omlette and a Glass of Wine_?
>
>Actually, it's fairly common, depending on the veg and the size it's
>cut to, but definitely not universal. You often have things like
>larger broccoli florets very quickly blanched, so they cook through
>before the hot pan/oil can brown them.
>
>Now that I think about it, it seems like the most common usage of the
>technique is when Chinese cooks are cooking American-type vegetables,
>things like broccoli or string beans.

I pre-blanch asparagus also, for similar reason. It also helps avoid 
that slightly bitter taste that fried asparagus can get.

'Lainie
___________________________________________________________________________
"It is our choices Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than 
our abilities."  -Albus Dumbledore




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