A Canadian Cook with Spanish Flavor: The Wonders of a Wok

I love my wok. You can really make wonders with it. Seriously, take any veggie, meat or fish, add a bit of sauce and voila. Easy and the best part: Healthy. You actually keep most of the veggies nutrients by not overcooking them. Since I had gone full italian for the most part of the week, I thought it would be a good idea to change things up a little :)

I marinated some pork cubes last night and, on my way home from work, I stopped by the fruiteria looking for some colors. The more colors, the better! Honestly, who doesn't like a colorful plate? A plate with lots of colors will actually taste a lot better than a plain dish. Our eyes really play a great deal when we eat; it isn't only about our tastebuds! So I got some red onions, red peppers, green beans, carrots and mushrooms. David is not a pepper fan and will not eat them if he can take them off his plate. He is a pretty picky eater so if I want him to eat certain veggies: creams or stuffed or sauces :) Oh well, I am practicing for when I'll have picky toddlers to feed :)

Pork and Veggies Teriyaki Stir-fry

Ingredients:

400grs of pork cubes
1 red pepper
1 small red onion
2 carrots
6 mushrooms
100grs green beans
1 cup of long grain rice
2 1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup teriyaki marinade sauce
2 tbsp of soya sauce
1 tbsp of mirin sauce
2 tbsp of fresh coriander
sesame oil

Marinade:
1 tsp of soya sauce
1 tbsp of mirin sauce
1 tsp of sesame oil
1 tbsp of teriyaki sauce

In a ziploc blag, prepare the marinade. Add the pork and mix well in order to cover all of the meat pieces. Let rest for a least an hour or overnight.

In a pot, drop the rice and water and cook. I added a bit of coriander to flavor the rice.

Dice into bite size pieces the onions, red pepper, mushrooms and green beans. Thinly slice the carrots.

Heat the wok. Add sesame oil and when ready, add the veggies. I tend to add the carrots and beans a minute or two before the rest as they take longer to cook.

Cook for a few minutes. I added a bit of water to the wok as the veggies were not releasing much. It helped them cook and actually prevented them from burning.

Remove the veggies from the wok.

Add some sesame oil and drop the marinated pork cubes.

Cook until the meat is no longer pink.

Add the veggies, coriander, mirin, soya and teriyaki sauces. Mix well. Let the flavors mix for a few minutes.

If your teriyaki sauce is pretty liquid, you might have to do what I did. Remove the meat and veggies, leaving the sauce at the bottom. Heat at high adding a bit of cornstarch. Thicken the sauce and re-add the veggies and meat. Here is the sauce thickening. You won't need to do this if your sauce is already thick. In Canada, I never had to but I guess the teriyaki sauce here is a lot more liquid!