Japanese stir-fried vegetables

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 2 carrots, cut into julienne strips
• 1 stalk(s) leek, the white part, cut into julienne strips
• 2 stalk(s) celery, cut into julienne strips
• 100 g sugar snap peas
• 200 g beans (princess beans), fine, relatively thin
• 1 cup bamboo shoots, diced
• 1 sweet potato(s), cut into julienne strips
• 3 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp ginger, very finely chopped or grated
• 80 ml soy sauce, Japanese, good quality
• 120 ml chicken broth
• 1 tsp, heaped wasabi powder, dissolved in the chicken broth, to taste
• 3 tbsp Mirin or Sherry medium
• ½ tbsp pepper (Szechuan pepper), ground
• ice cubes
• salt water

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 12 minutes; Total time approx. 42 minutes

Side dish to meat or fish

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and set aside a large bowl of iced water. Blanch each vegetable individually in the salted water for about 2 minutes, lift it out with a ladle, and place it in the iced water. Once cooled, scoop it out again and dry it on a kitchen towel. Add a little more ice each time before adding the next vegetable. Blanch the beans last. Because they need more salt, add a little more to the cooking water beforehand. When blanching individually, always ensure the water is boiling briskly before adding a vegetable. Therefore, always leave the heat on high, even if a vegetable is already in the water. When you need the vegetables, heat the oil in a large wok or large frying pan with high sides and sauté all the vegetables for about 2-3 minutes. This means that they are constantly being turned in the oil while they are heating and cooking. Now add the ginger, soy sauce, broth, and, if desired, wasabi and mirin. Cook at a higher temperature until the liquid has almost evaporated, stirring frequently. The vegetables should be thoroughly coated with the liquid. Finally, stir in the ground pepper and serve warm or cold.