Vegan Asian Recipes – Sweet and Spicy Stir Fry
This chopped no-chicken and vegan stir fry is one of our vegan vegetarian asian recipes. It is drenched in perfectly balanced sweet and spicy Asian restaurant inspired sauce. Crunchy, fresh tasting and ready in 30 minutes!
Are we even counting quarantine days anymore? If we are, than it’s gotta be like day 47 or so. Although our family wasn’t big on dining out prior to this lock down, we did have some favourite spots that I miss so very much. Most of these places are either Asian or Mexican inspired (easy vegan and gluten free options!), and we would venture out to these when I would grow tired of tasting my own cooking. Rare, but it happens #humblebrag 😛
I have always been a vegan stir fry enthusiast, and especially love the sweet and spicy sauces. Thankfully, my kiddos are well adjusted to moderately spicy foods and also dig these types of vegan asian recipes.
Craving something different than the traditional vegetables I’ll typically toss into a vegan stir fry, I instead wanted to go for finely chopped, ultra crunchy vegetables. Celery and baby bok choy make up the majority of the mix for this vegetarian asian recipe. Scallions also get thrown in for good measure.
Outside of the fresh, crunchy vegetables, I also wanted to this sweet and spicy stir fry to be super protein dense. Soy Butler Curls always do so well in vegan stir fry dishes and they are excellent at absorbing the flavour around them. Chopped almonds were also added, to again up the protein and also add an additional crunch!
Vegan Asian Recipes – Sweet and Spicy Stir Fry – Ingredients
- Vegetables – I keep it simple with finely chopped celery, scallions and baby bok choy. Other leafy greens, broccoli and even baby corn would likely be good in this vegetarian stir fry as well!
- Garlic & Ginger – Hugely important to use both fresh garlic and ginger. This vegan stir fry is actually rather simple, and much of the flavour will depend on this awesome duo! If you have to use jarred, it’s not a deal breaker, but if you have the option to go fresh, be sure you do.
- Soy Butler Curls – These are my preferred vegan chicken substitute. They are dried, giving them a long shelf life and because they are virtually flavourless, they absorb whatever sauce or liquid they are in. However, your favorite vegan chicken product should work here. Tofu could also be an option, but will alter this vegan vegetarian asian recipe.
- Almonds – Raw chopped almonds work great! They add an amazing texture to the sweet and spicy stir fry, without overwhelming the dish. Unsalted roasted peanuts might actually work nicely here as well!
Dinner in a hurry? Here are some other recipes ready in under 30 minutes
Vegan Hamburger Helper Copycat
Sweet and Spicy Stir Fry - Vegan & Gluten Free
Ingredients
Stir Fry
- 1 cup Soy Butler Curls
- 3 cups water or broth
- 2 tbsp neutral oil
- 3 cloves fresh garlic - chopped
- 1 2 inch ginger - chopped
- 1 cup baby bok choy - chopped
- 4 stalks celery - chopped
- 1/2 cup scallions - chopped
- 1/2 cup raw almonds - chopped
Sweet and Spicy Stir Fry Sauce
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp sambal oelek - or another chili sauce like Sriracha
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp cornstarch
Instructions
- In a sauce pan, bring water or broth to boil. Remove from heat and toss in dried Soy Butler curls. Stir well and allow to sit for 5 minutes until re-hydrated. Drain VERY well and squeeze as much liquid as you can from them.
- In a large non-stick pan over med-high heat, add oil and Soy Curls. Cook for 7 minutes until they begin to brown.
- Toss in the garlic and ginger, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds.
- Add in chopped celery, bok choy and scallions. Cook, stirring often, until bok choy leaves are bright green and slightly softened (about 3 minutes). Celery should remain quite crisp, but cook to desired crunchiness.
- Give sauce a quick stir and pour into the pan. Cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce thickens and everything is evenly coated (about 1-2 minutes). Add almonds and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
- Remove from heat and serve or rice or noodles!
Sweet and Spicy Stir Fry Sauce
- In a small bowl, whisk together all the ingredients. Set aside.
Notes
- I used finely chopped celery, scallions and baby bok choy. Other leafy greens, broccoli and even baby corn would likely be good in this stir fry as well!
- Hugely important to use both fresh garlic and ginger. This stir fry is actually rather simple, and much of the flavour will depend on this awesome duo! If you have to use jarred, it's not a deal breaker, but if you have the option to go fresh, be sure you do.
- Soy Butler Curls are my preferred vegan chicken substitute. They are dried, giving them a long shelf life and because they are virtually flavourless, they absorb whatever sauce or liquid they are in. However, your favorite vegan chicken product should work here. Tofu could also be an option, but will alter this stir fry.
- Raw chopped almonds add an amazing texture without overwhelming the dish. Unsalted roasted peanuts might actually work nicely here as well!
- Huy Fong Foods makes my die-hard fav sambal oelek sauce. Any Asian-style chili sauce could work here. Sriracha would make a fine replacement.
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