How do I make a good stir fry?

Stir frying is a high-heat technique and domestic hobs are the limiting factor. A restaurant burner recovers instantly from a full wok; a home hob doesn't. Everything below is about working around that: less in the pan at once, everything prepped in advance, and no waiting around mid-cook.

What you'll need

• Wok or large frying pan
• Oil with a high smoke point
• Everything chopped in advance
• Sauce mixed in advance (optional)

Step by step

1. Prepare every ingredient before turning on the heat.Stir frying takes minutes and gives you no time to chop mid-cook. This is non-negotiable.
2. Cut everything to a similar size, and keep it small.Even sizes cook evenly. Small pieces cook fast, which is the whole point of the method.
3. Mix the sauce in a bowl in advance.Adding soy, vinegar, cornflour and sugar separately mid-cook is how things burn while you measure.
4. Dry the protein thoroughly and get the pan smoking hot.Wet ingredients drop the pan temperature immediately and steam instead of searing.
5. Cook in batches — never fill the pan.A domestic hob can't maintain temperature with a full pan. Two or three batches, combined at the end.
6. Cook the protein first, remove it, then do the vegetables.It stops the protein overcooking while slower vegetables catch up.
7. Add aromatics — garlic, ginger, chilli — near the end, not the start.They burn in seconds at stir-fry temperatures and turn bitter.
8. Return everything to the pan, add the sauce, and toss for 30–60 seconds.The sauce should reduce and coat rather than pool. If it's watery, the pan wasn't hot enough.

Tips

• A carbon steel wok on a domestic hob beats a non-stick pan, because non-stick coatings shouldn't be used at the temperatures a stir fry wants.
• Velveting — tossing sliced meat in cornflour and a little egg white or oil before cooking — is what gives restaurant stir fries their tender texture.
• Add a splash of water or stock at the end if the vegetables need another moment; the steam finishes them without stewing.
• Serve immediately. A stir fry left standing goes soft within minutes.

Common mistakes

• Overcrowding the pan — The temperature crashes and everything steams. The single biggest cause of soggy stir fries.
• Chopping while cooking — The process takes minutes. Anything not ready in advance burns while you prepare it.
• Adding garlic and ginger at the start — They burn within seconds at these temperatures and make everything bitter.
• Using a non-stick pan on maximum heat — Non-stick coatings degrade at high temperatures. Carbon steel or stainless is the right choice.

Questions people ask