The Idiot Chef, Day 1.1: Idiot's Basic Stir Fry

So, the first post was all "oh man, I'm so awesome, I'm gonna cook and blog about it." Sorry. There seems to be an innate tendency for bloggers to begin their new adventures with "isn't this a neat project?" posts. In most cases, no, it's not. No one will care but you, the author.

In my case, I'm okay with that. So, if you're not me, and you're reading this, welcome! Now we actually get to a recipe.

Tonight's recipe is "Idiot's Basic Stir Fry." You'll probably see a lot of stir fry on this blog, because it's stupid easy, fairly cheap, and quick and easy. I can make it when I get hungry instead of having to do that awful "planning ahead" schtick.

So, without further ado:

Ingredients:
Sesame oil
Garlic
Soy sauce
Szechuan sauce (I use House of Tsang, but that's mostly because of the lack of alternatives where I live; I suppose you could also use teriyaki or whatever, or skip this entirely)
Vegetables (today I used a bag of frozen Oriental vegetables, but you can also use fresh of really anything you want. I prefer fresh veggies, but the produce section yesterday was really picked over)

Cover roughly 1/3 of the bottom of a skillt with oil. Heat the oil in a skillet. Add garlic until you think there's too much garlic, then a little more and stir until the garlic is golden and smells like garlic. Add soy sauce and Szechuan sauce and mix together on high heat. Add vegetables. Stir until cooked to death. By "cooked to death," I mean the vegetables have taken on the flavors of the sauce and are relatively well coated in garlic. Serve. If you want, you can serve over rice or pretty much any noodle you want (I didn't feel like waiting for rice tonight).

This stuff is so easy, Sarah Palin's totally-not-retarded youngest child could make it. It does look kind of unappetizing. The vegetables are covered in white flecks (that's the garlic, I used jarred minced garlic), and the sauce is the color of mud. But it's got just enough bite from the Szechuan and the umami flavor from the soy sauce and sesame oil fit together really well. Oh yeah - green beans get stuck in your teeth.

So, all in all, not bad for a first foray.