This stir fry cauliflower dish is a healthier twist on the classic Mongolian beef. It has the same great tasting sauce, but without all the calories.
We experienced some unusually hot weather last week in San Diego and I just haven’t been willing to turn on the oven. Enter this easy stir fry. Traditional Mongolian beef (recipe here) is prepared by frying the beef before tossing it in a salty sweet sauce. For this version, I skipped the frying. I also sliced the cauliflower very thinly, so that each piece has a large amount of stalk. Similar to cauliflower steaks, the stalks of the cauliflower are actually the best part, as they have a slightly chewy texture which mimics the texture of the beef.
This was simple and satisfying. You can serve it over brown rice, salad, etc.
Mongolian Cauliflower
Ingredients
- 1 medium head cauliflower thinly sliced (about 1/4 inch thick) sothat each piece has as much stalk as possible
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1/2 cup brown sugar packed
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tsp grated fresh ginger
- 2 green onion stalks cut into 1 1/2 inch long pieces
- 1 tsp cornstarch
Instructions
- In a large wok or pan, add vegetable oil and bring the pan to a medium high heat. Once oil and pan are heated, add cauliflower. Cook until just tender and still crunchy, adding a little water if needed. Drain any excess liquid from pan.
- In a small saucepan, add soy sauce, oyster sauce, brown sugar, garlic, and ginger. Stir to mix everything and bring sauce to a medium simmer. Let sauce cook on a medium simmer for about 5 minutes (stirring every 30 seconds), or until sauce thickens. Make sure you do not continuously stir throughout, otherwise you will release too much heat and sauce can't properly simmer. When sauce is finished, set aside.
- Sprinkle cauliflower with 1 tsp cornstarch, doing your best to scatter the cornstarch as much as possible so it doesn't clump up when cooking. Add in onions. Bring the pan to medium-high heat again and add in the sauce. Stir fry and toss until cauliflower is evenly coated in sauce. Sauce will initially become watery but should thicken as it simmers and interacts with the cornstarch. If you find your sauce to still be too thin, sprinkle an additional 1/4 tsp to 1/2 tsp cornstarch and mix into sauce and allow it to come to a simmer. Once cauliflower is evenly coated in sauce and sauce has thickened, turn off heat and serve.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
This is TC’s next recipe to try. We just need to buy ginger and cauliflower. She’s been enjoying looking at your recipes.
I’m so glad she has been enjoying looking at the recipes. And thanks for sharing the photos of her making this dish!!