Warning: cheap frozen veggie bags can wreck your stir fry

Last night I grabbed a $1.49 bag of mixed veggies from the discount store and my stir fry turned into a soggy mess because they were mostly ice chunks. What brands do you guys trust that don't turn everything watery?

2 comments

2 Comments

oscarb711mo ago

That seems like a user error, not a brand issue. Frozen veggies need to be cooked right, not just dumped in. Toss them in a dry pan first on high heat to burn off the ice before adding oil or sauce. If you paid $1.49 for a bag of mixed veggies, you should expect to put in a little extra work. The expensive brands are just the same stuff in fancier packaging. I've used the cheapest store brand stuff for years and my stir fry comes out fine because I know how to handle it. Maybe try defrosting them in a colander and patting them dry before cooking.

casey3931mo agoMost Upvoted

Actually I saw this video from a chef on YouTube who tested like 6 different brands of frozen broccoli and the cheap store brand actually had more florets and less stems than the expensive organic one. He did a whole comparison cooking them side by side. The trick he showed was spreading them out on a paper towel lined baking sheet for like 10 minutes before cooking to really get the moisture off. I started doing that and it made a huge difference in how they brown up.