If you're searching for a convenient and straightforward meal that is also healthy and nutritious, this vegetable stir fry recipe is a perfect choice. It combines two types of pepper, onion, garlic, corn, broccoli, and zucchini, with a delicious stir fry sauce that's low in sodium and low in fat.

Whether you're trying to lose weight, looking to maximize your vitamin intake, or just trying to convince your kids to eat more vegetables, this vegetarian stir fry dish is the one for you.

You can prep most of the ingredients the day before if you wish, and then when dinner time comes around, simply stir fry the vegetables, spices, and soy sauce for approximately 10 min, and you'll be good to go.

If you have never made stir fry vegetables, don't worry. Before you know it you will know exactly how to stir fry vegetables, with this easy recipe. Just be sure to follow the order below, as some ingredients need a little more cooking time than others.

If you add each ingredient to the wok in the correct sequence, you can't go wrong. Stir-fries are easy once you get the hang of them.

Healthy Vegetable Stir Fry

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Category

Lunch/Dinner

Servings

8

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

6 minutes

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of soy sauce (low sodium )
• 2 tbs of vegetable stock
• 2 tbs of brown sugar
• 2 tbs of cornstarch
• 2 tbs of sriracha
• 1 tbs of ginger, minced
• 3 tbs of peanut oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped coarsely
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped coarsely
• 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped coarsely
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 zucchini cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 can baby corn, drained and chopped in half
• 1 whole head of broccoli, split into florets
• Cooked noodles or cooked rice
• Sesame seeds (to garnish)

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl combine the following ingredients: minced ginger, sriracha sauce, cornstarch, vegetable stock, brown sugar, and low sodium soy sauce. Mix them together thoroughly until you have a smooth and consistent sauce, and then set aside.
2. Heat a cast iron wok over high heat and add the peanut oil.
3. Once the oil is up to cooking temperature, add the onions and peppers first. Stir fry them for 2-3 min, keeping them moving around the wok.
4. Add the garlic to your vegetable stir fry and cook for another minute, continuing to stir as you go.
5. Add the zucchini, and cook for another 2 min.
6. Add the baby corn and broccoli florets. Cook for another 2 min and finally add the sauce. Let the completed vegetable stir fry cook for another minute or so, until the sauce begins to thicken up.
7. Serve over your choice of noodles or rice, with a sprinkling of sesame seeds as a topping.

Vegetable Stir Fry FAQs

What other ingredients can I use in stir-fries?

If you have any vegetables that need to be used up in your refrigerator, stir-frying is the perfect way to put them to use while serving up a healthy meal the whole family can enjoy.

Chopped carrots, shelled peas, water chestnuts (you might find these in your local Asian supermarket), beansprouts, scallions, shredded cabbage, or Chinese leaf are just a few great options for customizing the vegetables in a stir fry.

As we mentioned above, the key to stir fry veggies is the timing. Tougher vegetables like carrots need to go into the wok earlier than more delicate ones like cabbage.

If you are looking to learn how to make stir-fried vegetables that have a little more kick (like they would authentically in Asian cuisine), don't be light-handed when it comes to adding chilis to your stir fry. You can either increase the amount of sriracha in the recipe or alternatively add chopped jalapeno or habanero peppers. If you want to be super authentic (and you can handle the heat), look for Thai peppers such as the birdseye chili - but don't overdo it!

What vegetables go with stir-fry?

One of the advantages of a vegetable stir fry is the huge assortment of vegetables that you can put in. In addition to the lower water content vegetables such as broccoli (steamed or roasted), beans, and carrots, you can also add higher water content vegetables for stir-fry like sweet peppers, spinach, and spring onion. Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and mushrooms are also good, healthy options.

You can even try different types of fruit – fresh cut oranges and pineapples, for instance, can act as a side/dessert option.

Is it healthy to stir fry vegetables?

Stir-frying is one of the healthiest ways to cook food. It helps them retain more of their nutritional content than they would if they were boiled, because of the high temperature needed to stir fry the food.

The process requires less oil, meaning the fat content in the vegetables is low. Whilst there is a low amount of oil used, you do need to be careful in ensuring that you stir fry with an oil that has a high smoke point – we have used peanut oil in our recipe.

Once cooked, the vegetables also contain lots of vitamins and minerals, including Vitamin C and potassium.

What vegetables do you stir-fry first?

As mentioned earlier, some ingredients take longer to cook than others. Any onions should be stir-fried first, followed by bell peppers, and then broccoli.

Carrots and mushrooms also take a long time to cook compared to more tender vegetables. Vegetables such as snow peas or bean sprouts, which cook in a shorter period of time, should be added towards the end.

Are there any other variations of the vegetable stir-fry?

We have already touched on ways that you can enhance your stir fry further, either by adding different vegetables or spices. You can also add crushed pepper flakes to your dish as an alternative, or even try including nuts such as sliced almonds or cashews.

There is also scope for protein options as well, such as tofu, which can be added either on top of or alongside your vegetable stir fry dish.

Serving up the perfect stir-fry

No matter how you decide to mix and match the veggies in your stir-fry, if you follow this recipe it is sure to be a hit!

If you loved this recipe and are looking for other ways to make Stir-Fry, try one of these recipes: Shrimp Stir-Fry and Tofu Stir-Fry.

And if you would like to have some more ideas of how to use a cast iron wok, check out this blog post on cast iron wok recipes.