Stir-Fried Bean Sprouts with Chili Bean Sauce | Wok Wednesdays

This stir-fired bean sprout with chili bean sauce dish is incredibly easy to make, and makes a wonderfully refreshing vegetable dish.

According to Grace Young, the author of Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge: The Ultimate Guide to Mastery, with Authentic Recipes and Stories, "when the weather's hot, it's important to eat more yin, or cooling vegetables like bean sprouts to restore balance to your body."

These sprouts are stir-fried with garlic, a sauce of Shao Hsing rice wine, soy sauce, and chili bean sauce. They also include a quarter cup each of julienned carrots and shredded scallions. Even after stir-frying, these sprouts are crisp and crunchy.


Chili bean sauce you ask? It's made with soybeans, chilis, and spices. There are several brands, each a little different. The one I have is Lee Kum Kee. I haven't had a chance to really compare it to the other brands, so I can't say that it is the best. I do like the mild spiciness that it adds to the stir-fried sprouts. I've heard that the Koon Chun brand is really good. I just need to finish my current jar, or Mr. Kitchen might crack down on my ingredient collecting tendencies... he's been very tolerant so far....

First you stir fry minced garlic for about 10 seconds (right?) and then add the bean sprouts and carrots. Once they have been stir-fried for about a minute (I know!), you add the scallions, some salt, and the mixture of rice wine, chili bean sauce, and soy sauce. Stir for another 30 seconds, and boom! You have an amazingly refreshing veggie dish.

To go with the yin theme, we had this vegetable dish with a seared sesame scallop salad. Ah-maze-ing summer dinner!

The recipe is on page 200 of Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge: The Ultimate Guide to Mastery, with Authentic Recipes and Stories.