Stir Fry from Stardew Valley

Julienned vegetables on a bed of rice.⁠—Stardew Valley item description

Stir Fry! It’s a perfect way to get some healthy greens on your plate. Sautee the greens in a little sesame oil and make sure to add plenty of fresh ginger and garlic. Now breathe deeply… Oh, that’s good.⁠—Queen of Sauce, Spring 7 Year 1

As a cook, I was attracted to this recipe because it seemed like an easy start to diving into Stardew Valley’s recipe list. I’m lucky that the stir fry has some descriptors to give some direction for the flavor profile. We’ll keep it simple: ginger and garlic as a base, sesame oil for subtle nutty flavors, and soy sauce and cornstarch as the base for the sauce. If you’re looking for a spicy kick, try adding some fresh chopped chili or sriracha to the sauce.  Otherwise you can use my strategy and cover the rice in shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice).

We’re straying slightly from the Queen of Sauce’s description in that we’re using toasted sesame oil for flavor in the sauce instead of for frying. Untoasted sesame oil is mild and great for frying, but lacks the intense aromatic flavor of toasted oil.

The vegetable ingredients are also pretty straightforward—shiitake mushrooms for common brown mushrooms, regular carrots for cave carrots, and kale. The pixel art in the game appears to suggest something more along the lines of Tuscan or dinosaur kale rather than the curly kale I’ve used here, but use whatever kind of kale you can find. Swiss chard would also be a decent substitute; don’t forget to finely chop and cook the chard stems as well if you use it!

This stir fry makes a good side to meat dishes or a great vegetarian main.

 

 

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

1 bunch kale, washed

3 ½ ounces shiitake mushrooms, washed and thinly sliced

1 cup matchstick or julienned carrots

1 tablespoon vegetable oil, plus more as needed

1 inch piece fresh or frozen ginger, grated

3-4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced

7 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce*

4 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon corn starch

3 cups cooked long grain rice of choice, for serving

toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

Instructions:

1. Mix together your soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and corn starch in a small bowl until combined. Set aside.
2. Strip your kale leaves, removing the stem. Thinly slice or roughly tear your kale leaves to create long ribbons.
3. Add your vegetable oil to the bottom of a wok or non-stick frying pan over medium high heat. Once your oil starts shimmering, add your garlic, ginger, and mushrooms. If you want a stronger garlic and ginger flavor, add it towards the end of your cook time.
4. When the mushrooms are mostly cooked through (roughly 3 minutes), add in your kale. Continue stirring and cooking until the kale goes bright green and wilts slightly, about 2-3 minutes. Keep adding vegetable oil as needed.
5. Add the carrot matchsticks and cook for about 1 minute, to get rid of the rawness but maintain the crunch. Pour your stir fry sauce over your cooked vegetables and stir, cooking for another minute or two until sauce is thickened and coats everything.
6. Serve immediately over cooked long grain rice and garnish with toasted sesame seeds.

*For a less salty sauce, use low sodium light soy sauce and reduce the amount to 5 tablespoons.

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