PLUM SAUCE VEGETABLE STIR-FRY

There is something about cooking stir-fries that calms me. When I first starting cooking mid 2010 and ceased making sandwiches every night for dinner, I admit that I was not too creative with my stir-fries. I didn’t like to colour outside the lines, so to speak. I would buy a stir-fry sauce and a packet of stir-fry vegetables and that would be about it. We all have to start somewhere however. One and a half years later, I am finally comfortable with grabbing any and sometimes all vegetables from my fridge and tossing them together to create a makeshift stir-fry. Purple cabbage is one such ingredient. So is orange capsicum! Feel free to use whatever vegetables you have in your kitchen for this dish, as all vegetables seem to go well with plum sauce. You could try carrots, wombok (Chinese cabbage), green beans, red or green capsicum, to name a few. You could also try cooking rice, egg or udon noodles as a base (I often use rice noodles as they are gluten free). The 2 tablespoons of water is vital as the plum sauce can become quite thick.  

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 200g rice noodles
• 1 medium brown onion (100-120g), finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 3cm fresh ginger, finely grated
• 1 medium orange capsicum (200g), thinly sliced
• 100g purple cabbage, finely shredded
• 180-200g broccoli, florets and stalks
• 4 tablespoons plum sauce
• 2 tablespoons water 

COOKING 

1. Heat a wok or large frying pan on medium heat and add sesame oil. Swirl oil around wok/pan to coat. Add brown onion, garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes or until onion is transparent. Add capsicum and broccoli and stir-fry for 3-5 minutes or until broccoli is soft. Add purple cabbage and stir-fry for 1 minute. Pour in plum sauce and water and stir for 1 minute. 

2. Meanwhile, bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add rice noodles and stir occasionally for 3-4 minutes or until noodles are tender. Drain well and add noodles to the vegetables in the wok/pan. Toss well to combine and serve. 

x E