Buy meat strips from your butcher or from your supermaket, or prepare meat strips from recommended cuts listed above by removing any fat and slicing thinly across the grain (across the direction of meat fibres). Slicing across the grain ensures tenderness. Cut
into very thin strips, approx 5 – 8 cm in length. Partially freeze meat for approx 30 minutes to make slicing easier.
Stir fry meat strips in small batches (approx 200 – 300g) to stop meat shedding its juice and ‘stewing’, resulting in tougher meat.
When adding meat strips to the frypan, the strips should sizzle.
Stir fry meat strips for 1 – 2 minutes. Any longer will toughen meat.
If cooking large batches, remove each batch when cooked and allow the frypan to reheat before stir frying the next batch. By cooking in small batches the heat of the frypan remains constant, ensuring the meat doesn’t stew and toughen.
Peanut oil is traditionally used for stir- fry Asian style dishes. However other oils such as vegetable, canola and light olive may be used.
Do not overfill the frypan. If necessary cook vegetables in batches as well and reheat at the end of stir frying. If using this method remember to under cook slightly so reheating will not spoil the finished dish.
Serve stir fried foods immediately to retain their crisp texture.
Sauté
Recommended temperature probe setting 8 – 10.
Shallow Frying
Recommended temperature probe setting 6 – 8.
Used to crispen and cook foods in a small amount of oil. The foods may have already been cooked.
Use approx 1 cup of oil, or sufficient oil so that half the food is immersed.
Preheat the oil before adding food. When using oil, never cover with the lid during heating or cooking, as this will cause condensation to drip into the oil and result in bubbling and splattering.
Do not move the frypan during heating or cooking.
Wipe moisture from foods to avoid splattering.
Cook a few pieces at a time to ensure crispness.
Drain cooked foods on paper towels to reduce greasiness.
Never leave your frypan unattended or unsupervised while shallow frying.
Allow oil to cool before removing from frypan.
Vegetable or canola oil is recommended for frying.
NOTE: Deep frying is not recommended as the frypan has a large surface area and shallow sides, this results in heat loss and possible oil overflow.
Used for sauteing onions, garlic, spices, curry, pastes, herbs, vegetables, meat and seafood.
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