½ teaspoon garlic powder (or 2 cloves fresh minced garlic)
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger (or ½ teaspoon ground ginger)
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
¼ cup raw coconut aminos *
2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup (or liquid sweetener of choice, such as honey or agave nectar)
1 teaspoon dry ground mustard **
1½ cups Homemade Stock or store-bought that is gluten free (vegetable, chicken, beef, fish.)
2 Tablespoons tapioca flour (or other starch, such as arrowroot, cornstarch, or potato starch)
2 Tablespoons cold water
1 cup carrots, sliced thin on diagonal
1 cup cauliflower florets, bite-size
1 cup sugar snap peas, whole
1 cup red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
1 cup celery, sliced ½-inch on diagonal
1½ to 2 cups mung bean sprouts ***
Up to ½ cup additional Homemade Stock (same as used in sauce above)
Sesame seeds, plain or toasted, optional
Instructions
First, prepare the sauce by heating 1 teaspoon of the sesame oil in a saucepan over medium heat
Add garlic powder, ginger, and pepper flakes
Stir to blend
Add aminos, vinegar, maple syrup, and mustard
Whisk to blend
Slowly add the stock
Turn up the heat to medium-high and allow the mixture to come to a full boil
While it is heating up, combine the tapioca (or other starch) and water with a whisk.
Once the sauce mixture reaches a full boil, add the tapioca/water mixture, whisking quickly as you add it.
Continue to whisk as the sauce thickens (this happens rapidly)
Remove it from the heat.
Whisk in the second teaspoon of sesame oil
Cover the pot, and leave it set it aside- off of the heat – while you prepare the veggies.
Cook the vegetables by heating about 2 Tablespoons of stock (this takes the place of using oil, but you can use oil if you prefer; olive, sesame, etc. would work fine) in a large pan (or wok) over high heat.
Make sure to add your veggies one variety at a time in the order I have for you here
It takes carrots and cauliflower about the same amount of time to cook, so add those together first.
Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until they begin to become tender.
Add your snap peas.
Cook and stir everything together for 1 minute more.
Add your red pepper strips and celery
Cook and stir everything for 1 additional minute.
Finally, add your mung bean sprouts.
Stir the complete vegetable mixture for 30 more seconds.
Then turn off the heat.
Stir in sesame seeds.
Pour reserved sauce over the vegetables and stir to heat through.
Serve over your favorite gluten free grain: quinoa, millet, rice, etc., or as a side dish for roasted meat or poultry.
Notes
Thought you’d like to know…
Use coconut aminos in place of soy sauce for soy allergy; if no soy allergy, use a certified gluten-free soy sauce like Tamari or Kikkoman’s new GF tamari-style sauce.
Dry ground mustard is the ground seeds of the mustard plant. Although this spice has virtually no odor in dry form, it has a very sharp and spicy flavor that develops after the ground mustard is moistened. Prepared yellow or other mustard is not an adequate substitute for dry ground mustard.
Mung bean sprouts are a common ingredient in Chinese and other Asian dishes. Their slightly sweet flavor balances stronger flavors like ginger and red pepper flakes. Mung sprouts are high in folate, vitamin C, and protein, with some protein only released after heating, which makes these a terrific addition to your stir-fry! Just remember, sprouts only need a 30-second sizzle, so add them to your pan last so they’ll keep crisp.
