An iron wok sits over a roaring fire on a clay stove, a hand tosses greens and shredded meat with a wooden spatula so that leaves and strips fly into the air, and a blue-and-white bowl beside it holds the finished dish.
Quick in the wok
Introduction
Cooking small pieces in a little oil over high heat, tossed quickly in the wok.
Stir-frying is a method of cooking small pieces of food quickly over high heat in a hot wok with a little oil, tossing them until done. It has named sub-techniques such as plain stir-fry, quick-fry and dry stir-fry, each with its own demands on heat, oil temperature and the toss of the wok. The method appears early in the Qi Min Yao Shu, whose stir-fried eggs are cracked into the pan and stirred until cooked. Deep-frying in plenty of oil, braising with a sauce and slow stewing over low heat each have classes of their own.