Lemon Garlic Basil Plant Based Stir Fry Recipe
Crisp broccoli, peppers, and carrots tossed in a tangy Asian-inspired lemon-garlic sauce scented with fragrant basil! This plant based stir fry recipe is easy to make at home and a super healthy dinner.
I originally published this recipe in 2023 and have since added new video and more helpful success tips.
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Let’s file this recipe under: What To Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking. It’s not an 8-ingredient dinner but even with the added ingredients, stir-fries are my go-to quick and easy meal.
Cook a pot of rice and cook the veggies and you have dinner in under 20 minutes. They are the perfect dish for busy weeknights when you come home late and need to put something on the table–FAST!
They are also a good way to pack in lots of veggies. This vegetable stir-fry has five beautiful, colorful vegetables but you could add even more like bean sprouts or asparagus for a plant based stir fry that is one of those go-to healthy meals (that also cleans out the fridge at the end of the week)!
The most important aspect to a good vegan stir fry recipe is a killer homemade stir fry sauce. I make sure to stock my pantry at all times with my favorite fish sauce (here’s a good vegan option), really good soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and either dry sherry, Mirin, or Shaoxing. If you have these things on hand you can whip up a flavorful sauce with practically zero effort.
This homemade stir-fry sauce takes those ingredients then adds vibrant lemon juice, fragrant basil, and lots of garlic. The lemon adds a unique brightness not typically associated with Asian food. I love the lemon-garlic combo. It makes the whole thing irresistible.
What Makes This My Best Plant Based Stir Fry Recipe?
- The flavors are so unique and delicious
- A magical mix of textures—a great way to get tons of veggies
- Insanely good stir fry sauce
- Makes a great side dish or main course with steamed rice, soba noodles or ramen noodles
- Super quick to make. The prep time is taken up chopping a few vegetables and the cook time is even less. It takes me a total time of 20 minutes.
- Comes together so quickly, you’ll have plenty of time to make dessert! Try my peanut butter banana fritters, cinnamon carrot apple bread, or caramel apple pound cake.
Ingredients
- Vegetable broth. Or low-sodium chicken broth if you aren’t following a vegan diet.
- Lemon juice. Please make sure this is fresh-squeezed.
- Soy sauce. Or low sodium soy sauce if you are watching your sodium intake or tamari to make this recipe gluten-free.
- Dry sherry. Add a tablespoon more vegetable broth and a 1/2 teaspoon more sugar if you don’t want to use sherry.
- Fish sauce. Substitute vegan fish sauce to make this recipe vegan-friendly.
- Cornstarch. Just a little bit to add viscosity to the sauce.
- Granulated sugar. Or honey if you aren’t following a vegan diet.
- Canola oil. Or grapeseed, vegetable, or avocado oil.
- Fresh ginger. Ginger adds complexity. Mince or grate it. Your choice.
- Broccoli. Cut the broccoli florets small so they cook quickly.
- Garlic. There’s lots of garlic in this sauce; 5 garlic cloves to be exact (which is a good thing).
- Carrots. Slice into 1/2-inch thick slices, or thinner, for quicker cooking.
- Bell peppers. Use red bell pepper or yellow to give this dish stunning color.
- Basil. Thinly slice the basil so it incorporates nicely throughout the dish. I like to sprinkle a little extra on top as well.
- Microgreens. This is optional but I like the freshness it adds on top of each bowl.
- Sesame seeds. For crunch and nuttiness, but you can leave off if you’d like.
- Steamed brown rice. Serve with steamed brown rice, white rice, or noodles.
How To Make This Recipe
step one
Mix the savory stir fry sauce. First start by steaming the rice. Then whisk together the broth, lemon juice, and a tbsp of soy sauce, sherry, and fish sauce (or vegan fish sauce for vegan stir-fry recipes) in a small bowl. Then add a tsp of cornstarch and sugar. Set aside. You can make the sauce 3-4 days in advance and keep in the fridge.
step two
Stir fry the veggies. Heat oil over very high heat in a large skillet, frying pan, or wok, if you have one. Add broccoli and carrots and cook, stirring frequently until the color becomes vibrant and they brown in a couple spots.
step three
Add the sauce. Now add the ginger, garlic, bell peppers and stir fry for a minute. Add the sauce and cook for a minute or two just until boiling and slightly thickened. Finally add basil and stir quickly to combine.
step four
Serve. Serve with steamed brown rice or white rice or even over noodles. Top with sesame seeds, micro greens and more basil. Other garnishes could include, green onions Enjoy!
Vegetable Stir Fry Recipe FAQ’s
Can I use different vegetables? Of course! Just make sure they are quick-cooking veggies like bok choy, snow peas, green beans, snap peas, water chestnuts, zucchini, or thinly sliced onions.
What protein would be good? Anything that cooks quickly, like shrimp, for example, would be excellent. Add in with the broccoli and carrots. Or try plant-based proteins like tofu or plant based meat.
How do I make this spicy? You could add thinly sliced jalapeños with the bell peppers or sprinkle with crushed red pepper flakes at the end. You could also add chili garlic paste to the savory sauce.
What is the best way to store and reheat leftovers? Like all stir fries, this is best eaten immediately. However, if you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat on the stove or in the microwave until hot all the way through.
Do I need to have a wok to make this? Nope! I don’t own a wok (although it’s on my wish list). I use my favorite 14-inch frying pan. I use it to make everything from braised meatballs to pan-fried cod. If you are in the market for new pots and pans, check out all my must-haves here.
Love This Recipe? Try:
- Ginger Hoisin Tofu Stir-Fry
- Tofu and Asparagus Veggie Stir Fry
- Pasta with Vegan Bolognese
- 16 Easy and Delicious Vegan Lunches
- Easy Faux Short Rib Pho
- Cucumber Tomato Avocado Salad
- Beef Stir Fry with Mushrooms
The Ideal Quick Healthy Dinner
I hope you give this one a try. I think you are going to love it. When you try it, let me know how it went! Share a photo and tag me on Instagram using @katesbestrecipes so that I can see. Or leave me a comment below (don’t forget to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating)! Also, sign up for my weekly recipe newsletter so you never miss a thing.
Lemon Garlic Vegetable Stir Fry Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup vegetable stock or broth
- 1/4 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice (from 2 lemons)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon dry sherry
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoon canola oil
- 3 1/2 cups chopped broccoli florets and peeled stems, (about 1 large head)
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 medium bell peppers, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- 2 cups thinly sliced basil, plus more for serving
- steamed brown rice, for serving
- toasted sesame seeds, for serving
- micorgreens, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Make sauce. Combine stock, lemon juice, soy sauce, sherry, fish sauce, cornstarch, and sugar in a small bowl. Stir to combine and set aside.
- Stir-fry vegetables. Heat oil in a large nonstick frying pan over high heat. Once shimmering add broccoli and carrots and cook until bright in color and browned in a few spots, about a minute or two. Add peppers, garlic and ginger and cook, stirring constantly, until peppers are soft around the edges but still have crunch to them, about 2 minutes.
- Add sauce. Give sauce a quick stir to incorporate cornstarch and sugar again then, add to pan, stir to combine. Bring sauce to a boil, cook a minute or two until slightly thickened then remove from heat and stir in basil.
- Serve. Serve with steamed brown or white rice and top each serving with sesame seeds, microgreens (if you'd like) and more fresh basil.
Notes
- Prep. The cooking time goes really fast so make sure you have all the veggies, ginger, garlic, and basil prepped and ready to go before you start cooking.
- Doneness. Don’t overcook the veggies. I like to keep them fairly crisp, so only stir fry a few minutes total. The veggies will continue to cook as you add the sauce and plate everything up.
- Lemon juice. Make sure you use fresh-squeezed lemon juice. Not the stuff in the bottle or jar.
- Make ahead. This is really best eaten right away. Any leftovers will keep for 3 days in the fridge and reheat until simmering on the stove or in the microwave.
Hello. Using fish sauce as an ingredient makes this not ‘plant-based’ btw. Might need to amend that. Thanks
Thank you for your comment! I actually included a note in the recipe about using a vegan fish sauce as a substitute to keep it plant-based and mention my favorite brand in the blog post. I hope that helps clarify! Let me know if you have any other questions. 😊
Apologies, I jumped straight to the recipe so didn’t see any notes. Thanks for clarifying 🙂