Fresh relish to top off your stir-fry upon serving.


Here’s a simple marinade that will catapult your usual home made suburban stir-fry to a whole new super tasty level. It is suitable for a variety of bases be that vegetarian, beef, chicken, pork or lamb.   For this evening’s family dinner I combined finely sliced morsels of tender Spring lamb fillets with a big bowl of beautiful seasonal veggies. A vintage looking jar of Blender Ready Coriander Chilli Relish and steamed rice provided the perfect accompaniments. 

Although my version of stir-fry is not at all authentic Asian fare, my children still love it! Second and third helpings are common and no sooner have they downed their chopsticks – yes, the child friendly joined-at the-top versions always come out of the drawer when we eat this dish – they are asking when would I be able to make it again!

Use whatever veggies your family enjoys eating; broccoli, carrots, zucchini, sweet red capsicum, French beans, baby corn, mushrooms, celery, spring onions, cauliflower. A good mixture of colour, shapes and texture makes for a much more appealing stir-fry. Just endeavour to dice the veggies into similar sized portions to enable them to cook evenly. The same applies for your meat if you are using any. 

On the subject of cooking, it is best to use either a large wok or a wide, frypan or pot and quickly cook in batches, firstly the the prepared vegetables and then the meat. Your vegetables should be just firm to the bite, glossy and hold their form once stir-fried. Add a decent splash of oil (I use olive oil) in between cooking each batch. Do not overcrowd the pan otherwise your ingredients will sweat and stew resulting in rubbery, limp and uninteresting pieces. I heard chef extraordinaire Christine Mansfield point this out during an ABC Radio interview several years ago and since following her practical advice, my stir-fries have become one of the most popular meals on our family menu. 

The quantity of marinade below is enough for 1.25 kilograms of lamb fillets and enough mixed veggies diced into bite sized pieces to fill a 3 litre mixing bowl. Of course you can successfully halve the ingredients if cooking for a smaller crowd. 


Taste Sensation Stir-Fry Marinade

3 – 4 fat cloves of garlic crushed
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
1 teaspoon dried red chilli flakes
juice of 2 limes
a little sea salt to taste
100 ml soy sauce – I use Kikkoman Salt Reduced.
75 ml runny honey

Combine all of the ingredients (with the exception of the salt) into a bowl with your meat (or if making a vegetarian option, just your vegetables). Mix through to coat evenly and then either set aside while you prepare the veggies or cover and place in the fridge until needed. 

Wash and dice up your choice of veggies. 

Heat up a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a wok, frypan or large pot over a medium to high heat. Add the veggies in 4 lots, stirring about with a wooden spatula or similar to coat with the oil. Cover with a lid for a couple of minutes before stirring again. Remove to a clean bowl and repeat with the next batch and so on. 

Add another splash of oil to the same pan and stir-fry to meat also in 4 batches. Use a slotted spoon to remove the meat form the marinade, leaving excess liquid in the marinading bowl. Add each cooked batch of meat to the veggie bowl. 

Pour the remaining marinade into a small saucepan and bring briefly to the boil. Turn down the heat once the liquid starts to bubble and simmer for two minutes. Remove fro the heat and pour over your stir-fried ingredients. Toss through and serve hot with steamed rice and the relish, detailed below.

Blender Ready Coriander Chilli Relish 

Half a bunch of coriander leaves (pick off the leaves and discard the stems)
3 long green medium heat chillies cut in half and remove the seeds to reduce the heat)
50 ml olive oil
sea salt to taste

Put all of the ingredients into a blender and blitz until a finely chopped, fresh green tinted liquid appears. Pour into an attractive jar and set on your tables. Spoon over each diner’s portion of stir-fry.