Stir-fry Asparagus & Ham
This stir-fry asparagus & ham is a homely Chinese dish. The main ingredients in this recipe are simple and few. The ham and oyster + soy sauce seasonings are all savoury ingredients, so this dish goes really well with a bowl of steamed rice. I am using breakfast ham here. You can substitute the ham with turkey ham (if you don’t consume pork), shrimp or tofu.
See Also:
I used thin asparagus for this stir-fry. Unlike the thick asparagus, there is no need to blanch them before adding to the wok. It is also optional whether you wish to shave the outer skin of each asparagus (to eliminate the asparagus’ woody texture). For thin asparagus, I shave only the bottom half of each asparagus and not all the way through. The asparagus actually looks better (more green) without shaving, and the top half of a thin spear is still tender without any prep. For thick asparagus, I will shave them the stem all the way through as the woody texture is much more apparent.
Stir-fry Asparagus & Ham Recipe
In this recipe, thin asparagus are used. If using thick asparagus, check out this detailed tutorial on how to prep asparagus prior to adding to the wok, so that their inherent woody texture is eliminated. Very thick asparagus may also benefit by blanching them in boiling water for 1 minute, before adding to the wok.
Ingredients:
- 400 grams thin asparagus
- 100 grams sliced ham diced
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
(A) Seasonings
- 3/4 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1/2 tsp light soy sauce
- 2-3 tbsp water add more if needed
- 2 dashes white pepper powder
Directions:
- Prep asparagus. Trim and discard the bottom ends (about 5 cm or 2 inches) of the asparagus. Optional: Using a vegetable peeler, shave the outer skin on the bottom half of each remaining stalk, to remove the woody texture. Slice prepped asparagus to uniform shorter lengths.
- Cook garlic and ham. Heat oil in a wokpan. Add garlic and diced ham. Stir fry until the garlic is aromatic and some parts of the ham are browned.
- Cook asparagus and serve. Add prepped asparagus and seasonings (A). Stir fry everything quickly until the asparagus are cooked.