student cooking

[shortylilly]

hi, i'm a student and i find it cheaper to cook food at home, rather than take-aways etc. i have been trying to do chinese veggie stir-fry for a while now, but it never seems to taste like the ones from the restaurants. heres what i do, fry stir-fry veg (the ones you get in a pack from tesco etc), add soy sauce and then the noodles. what am i doing wrong, because it just doesn't taste as good. thanks

[Gnisy]

perhaps you should fry diced up garlic in hot oil first before you add the vege. Add the soy sauce ( I prefer oyster sauce ) when the vege is almost cooked and a dash of salt for taste. Err, that's how I do my home-cooked veges, not a professional opinion k? Do tell if the recipe worked.

[qapmoc]

Many chinese resto's use an ingredient which you have not mentioned which ''enhances'' the taste of their foods a lot, it is monosodium glutamate (MSG). It really does improve the flavour. BUT read This to see why it is not a good idea to use it, it also explains the odd symptoms some people get after eating chinese food.

[Chessman]

You could always ask if the chef could give you his/her recipe, i've done this, and normally, they are over the moon, and will do so, providing they are not too busy at the time.

[sarah666]

You can get a little jar in supermarkets called "chinese 5 spice"

If you add this to the veg it will be well nice :)

[hannahjo]

As qapmoc said, Chinese takeaways contain a lot of msg, plus probably loads of sugar, salt etc all things which aren�t very good for you. My favourite recipe is to put some chopped garlic, ginger, chilli, soy sauce and the juice of a lime in with your veg. It doesn�t taste like a take away Chinese but it is delicious, healthy & cheap!

[sunflower68]

Good to see you are using your initiative by saving money shortylilly. Not sure on the flavour-side of things. A chinese meal usually has loads of sauce. However I have a money-saving tip as I like a stir fry too. Don't buy the stir fry pack, instead buy carrots, mushrooms, onion, peppers, beanshoots, chinese leaf, white cabbage, dried noodles, fresh ginger, chillies and garlic. These last me days and days.

[WendyS]

Are you adding garlic, chopped ginger or onions to your vegetables? They're not usually included in the packs of stir-fry vegetables and in my view, without these flavours it's difficult to produce anything that tastes even vaguely Chinese. Sunflower is right about the poor value of the ready-prepared stir fry veggie packs. Apart from the fact that the shredded vegetables start losing their goodness & vitamins the moment they're prepared, a selection of whole carrots, onions, celery, mushrooms, cabbage is much better and lasts longer

[WoWo]

Try this one from Ken Hom, the initial ingredients may be a little expensive (Soy Sauce and Rice Wine) but they will last for ages,

http://www.uktvfood.co.uk/index.cfm?uktv=recipes.recipe& amp;iID=516247

Also don't buy those straight to Wok Noodles, they are rubbish get some decent ones, Sharwoods for example, half the price and 10 times the taste.

[verna77]

Buy a bottle of toasted sesame oil. It seems expensive but you only need to add a little at the end - don't use it to actually fry the veggies in as it loses flavour when you heat it too much. Chinese 5 spice is also worth buying.

[Alibobs]

Chinse 5 spice is good, I also like to put in a couple of tablespoons of Sharwoods hoisin sauce - yum yum

[shortylilly]

thank you all for your suggestions. i'll try them out and see how i get on! much appreciated!