I want to talk about breakfast. In particular the western culture of breakfast. We are deeply embedded in the milk + cereal or fatty foods first thing in the morning, and I feel we need to break free. Go to any cafe in Perth (which I’m sure applies to the rest of the western world), and you are faced with a choice of bacon and egg varieties mixed with wheat products like bread, pancakes or waffles, and a few healthy options (yogurt and grains anyone?).
On the other hand, if you need breakfast in many Asian countries, you are faced with pretty much the same options you have for the rest of the day – stir fry, rice & noodle dishes, and so on. I believe they’ve got it right and we need to jump onboard. Friends, please stop commenting on why I’m eating noodles first thing in the morning, it’s perfectly normal across most of the world’s population!
This also leads to the dish I believe many Aussies are afraid to make – the humble stir fry. I was in a similar position, making a mess of any attempt, but after seeing and reading a lot about the stir fry recently (thank you Adam Liaw) I’ve conquered my fears, and in the process figured out a quick and easy, not to mention delicious and healthy breakfast. I have put together a quick recipe for one or two people below. Noting don’t overfill the wok, the more that’s in there the less heat, which is key to a good stir fry.
Here’s how I do it. First rule, wok needs to be hot. This is seemingly obvious, but I never realised how hot and used to chuck ingredients in way to early. The wok should be starting to smoke and if you want to test another way, splash a little water in there and watch it evaporate. If it flash-boils and disappears quickly you are good to go.
* Edit: I wanted to add that I have noticed people saying they cannot use their wok because they only have an electric stove top. This is not true, electric works fine and requires the same principle of making sure the wok is hot enough, just be patient and give it time to heat up.
Now we throw in some veg, I’ve done pak choi stems and capsicum below.
Then any leafy greens, these are the pak choi leaves with some chopped ginger.
Now push the veg to the side and time for the egg, lightly scrambled.
Mix the egg around when you are happy with its consistency and chuck in some noodles or rice. I’ve used my son’s left over spicy noodles (mi goreng, his favourite breakfast, he’s eight and way ahead of the rest of us).
Now it’s basically done and optional what to do next. Keep it simple, add nothing and you have a healthy meat free brekkie. Add soy sauce, oyster or other sauce, maybe some sesame oil and black pepper for a more Asian flavour. Add any leftovers you might have lying around – I’ve done sausages and broccoli from last night’s dinner below.
That’s it, so simple once you get the knack. I eat this for brekkie and other meals whenever I can, and the variations are endless. Rice works just as well, and garnish with any green herbs if you feel like it.