Stir-frying is one of the quickest and easiest ways to get a balanced, flavorful meal on the table. Combine vegetables like baby bok choy, broccoli or green beans with lean proteins like beef, chicken or tofu, and fry those together with your favorite sauce for a simple, but delicious dish. Any night of the week is the perfect time to make four- and five-star recipes like our Chicken & Broccoli Stir-Fry or Orange-Ginger Chicken Bowls.
Teriyaki Chicken Stir-Fry
Photographer: Brie Goldman, Food Stylist: Addelyn Evans, Prop Stylist: Gabriel Greco
Look for pre-sliced pepper-and-onion mix in the produce section of the supermarket. It helps save prep time in this quick five-ingredient dinner. This easy dinner calls for hot cooked brown rice, which is perfect if you have leftovers. If not, look for microwaveable brown rice or frozen brown rice to keep prep minimal.
Chicken & Broccoli Stir-Fry
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Julian Hensarling, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle
This juicy chicken and broccoli stir-fry features tender-crisp broccoli coated in a velvety sauce flavored with hoisin—a flavorful sauce made from fermented soybean paste that strikes the perfect balance between sweet and tangy. Try this easy stir-fry with chicken tenders, boneless, skinless chicken thighs, or even pork tenderloin for a different twist.
Quick & Easy Cabbage Stir-Fry
Phoographer: Jacob Fox, Food stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop stylist: Joseph Wanek
This quick and easy stir-fry cabbage recipe pairs well with roasted chicken or pork, or serve it over rice with a poached egg as a vegetarian main dish. Sweet green cabbage is easy to find and works well here, but savoy cabbage or napa cabbage will work well too. For a slightly different flavor, use peanut oil in place of sesame oil.
Zucchini Stir-Fry
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn
This tender stir-fried zucchini comes together in just a few minutes. The grated ginger adds an earthy spice that complements the soy sauce and Sriracha without overpowering the zucchini’s delicate flavor. To elevate the flavor and presentation, sprinkle with togarashi spice and toasted black sesame seeds before serving.
Cauliflower Stir-Fry
Jennifer Causey
This easy cauliflower stir-fry has a great balance of textures and flavors with bright and colorful tender-crisp veggies. Try substituting broccoli for the cauliflower or snap peas for the snow peas for another variation on this quick dinner.
Shrimp & Broccoli Stir-Fry
Victor Protasio
The broccoli in this simple shrimp-and-broccoli stir-fry absorbs the flavors of the sauce, which also coats the shrimp perfectly. The ingredients can be prepped ahead of time and whipped together in about 15 minutes, making this meal ideal for busy weeknights.
Pork & Green Bean Stir-Fry
Johnny & Charlotte Autry
Apricot jam adds just the right amount of sweetness to balance the spicy, salty and umami flavors without turning the sauce into a sugar bomb. Serve with cooked rice to round out the meal.
Chicken Fajita Stir-Fry
Jacob Fox
A wok makes easy work of chicken and vegetables in this quick variation on fajitas. You can serve this with rice or beans on the side, if desired.
Ginger Beef Stir-Fry with Peppers
Jacob Fox
This vibrant, colorful dish is great for those who love a little heat. Adjust the amount of chile-garlic sauce according to your preferred heat level. To smash ginger, use the side of a chef’s knife or the flat bottom of a sturdy mug. Serve with rice, if desired.
Orange-Ginger Chicken Bowls
Jacob Fox
The orange-ginger chicken gets a cornstarch coating for a few reasons: It locks moisture into the meat, creates a crispy coating and gives something for the sauce to cling to. We like the hint of flavor peanut oil adds to this stir-fry. But if you need to omit it due to a food allergy, any high-heat oil will do, like canola or grapeseed.
Scallion-Ginger Beef & Broccoli
Whip up a chef-quality stir-fry recipe at home. This beef and broccoli stir-fry packs in the vegetables and takes just 30 minutes to prep. Ginger, which adds a lively kick to this stir-fry, has long been touted for its power to settle stomachs. But that’s not its only superpower: preliminary research suggests it may improve blood sugar and inflammation too.
Shrimp Pad Thai
Photographer: Rachel Marek, Food stylist: Lauren McAnelly, Prop stylist: Gabriel Greco
This iconic Thai recipe features rice noodles stir-fried in a wok with a sauce that strikes the perfect balance of tangy, salty and sweet. Along with the noodles, pad thai typically includes a mix of ingredients such as shrimp, tofu, scrambled eggs, bean sprouts and a handful of aromatics like garlic, shallot and scallions. The sauce in this recipe features tamarind paste, which adds a decisively tangy flavor that’s balanced with palm sugar. Tamarind paste pairs beautifully with sweet ingredients. Mix any leftovers into cocktails, make a chutney, or drizzle it on fruit.
Sesame Shrimp Stir-Fry with Spinach
This stir-fry recipe calls for buying shrimp that’s already peeled and deveined, which saves you about 10 minutes of prep time. Want this on the milder side? Swap ketchup for the chili-garlic sauce.
Kung Pao Chicken with Bell Peppers
Here’s an easy chicken recipe you’ll definitely want to add to your dinner repertoire. A quick marinade tenderizes the chicken and infuses flavor into this stir-fry. Adding a little oil to finish the marinade coats the chicken and helps keep it from sticking to the pan.
Sesame-Garlic Beef & Broccoli with Whole-Wheat Noodles
A savory marinade with garlic, ginger, soy sauce and sesame oil infuses flavor into sirloin steak pieces in this healthy beef and broccoli stir-fry recipe. Tip: Partially freeze the beef for easier slicing.
