Garlic Lover’s Vegetable Stir Fry
As soon as summer vegetables are abundant I love to make this Garlic Lover’s Vegetable Stir Fry with eggplant, zucchini, and yellow squash! See tips in the recipe for making this garlic vegetable stir fry recipe a bit lower in carbs, or for other vegetables you can use.
PIN Garlic Lover’s Vegetable Stir-Fry to try it later!
Are you a fan of garlic and stir-fry cooking? This simple Garlic Lover’s Vegetable Stir-Fry is a recipe I’ve been making for years, and even if you don’t have a wok, stir frying is a simple way to turn out great-tasting vegetables from very few ingredients. And this garlic and vegetable stir fry has been a favorite summer side dish for me for years, so I’m featuring it as my Friday Favorites pick for this week.
This summer vegetable stir-fry recipe was originally inspired by the last few vegetables I picked from my garden, and when I had a big vegetable garden I used to make this every summer as soon as I had a surplus of vegetables to be used. Now I buy veggies from the Farmers Market to make this, or sometimes I get garden produce from friends or family members.
I used a combination of eggplant, zucchini, and yellow squash, but you can easily make this with just one of those ingredients. And if it’s not garden season, see below about how to vary the recipe to use other vegetables so this can be a tasty way to make a garlicky vegetable side dish any time of year!
What ingredients do you need?
(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)
- zucchini
- yellow squash
- eggplant
- Peanut Oil (affiliate link), or other high smoke-point oil
- Minced Garlic (affiliate link)
- onion
- salt
- Oyster Sauce (affiliate link) or Gluten-Free Oyster Sauce (affiliate link)
Use the Principles of Chinese Cooking for this Vegetable Stir Fry:
I learned how to stir-fry years ago by taking a Chinese Cooking class taught by a visiting professor from China, and once you master the basic technique, you can get good results with many different combinations of ingredients. In the Chinese Cooking class I learned these Five Principles of Chinese Cooking that have helped me make many different stir fry dishes through the years:
- Preheat the wok or pan (before you put the oil in).
- Season the oil (with whole pieces of garlic and sometimes ginger root, which you often remove when you add the food to be cooked).
- Symmetry of cut (all pieces must be cut the same size and shape).
- Have all ingredients cut and sauces mixed before you cook.
- Use very high heat and cook fast.
The only thing that’s slightly different in this recipe is the use of minced garlic, which is left in the finished dish. I used a lot of garlic (!) but if you’re not such a garlic lover, you can use a bit less.
Can you make this garlic vegetable stir fry with other vegetables?
If it’s not summer vegetable season you can definitely make this stir fry with other vegetables. If you use a combination that includes harder veggies (like carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, sugar snap peas, or peppers) you’ll want to add those to the wok first and cook for a few minutes before you add the softer veggies. Besides the zucchini, yellow squash, and eggplant, mushrooms and onions would also be delicious in this. The sauce used here will taste good on a wide variety of different vegetables!
How can you make this vegetable stir fry lower in carbs?
Oyster Sauce (affiliate link) or Gluten-Free Oyster Sauce (affiliate link) is a fairly high-carb ingredient. If you’d like to make a version of this recipe that’s lower in carbs, replace some of the oyster sauce with Soy Sauce or Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (affiliate link).
Can you make the garlic vegetable stir fry without a wok?
I love to use a wok for my stir-fry cooking, but if you don’t want to buy a special pan you can definitely make this recipe in a large heavy frying pan!
Want more ideas for cooking zucchini?
If you have lots of garden zucchini my post with 50 Amazing Zucchini Recipes will give you good ideas for cooking them! You might also like Slow Cooker Zucchini Recipes or Instant Pot Zucchini Recipes found on my Slow Cooker or Pressure Cooker site.
How to Make Garlic Lover’s Vegetable Stir Fry:
(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)
- These are the very last vegetables from my garden, and this is actually a tiny colander, so some of these were baby veggies, perfect for stir-frying.
- If you make this with bigger zucchini or squash, you should cut away some of the inside where the seeds are, and then cut the vegetables into strips. Starting in back, cut the zucchini into fourths lengthwise, then cut away the inner part of each strip, then cut into strips about 1/2 inch side.
- “Symmetry of cut” in Chinese Cooking means that the food should be cut into pieces that are approximately the same size and same shape so everything cooks in the same amount of time.
- I also cut the onions so they were a similar size and shape as the other ingredients.
- Before you start to cook, have all ingredients cut, have the oil, garlic, oyster sauce, and salt on the counter, and have measuring spoons ready.
- If you don’t have a wok, use the largest heavy frying pan you have. This recipe doesn’t need a lid.
- Start by heating the wok or pan for 1-2 minutes, until it’s too hot to hold your hand over it.
- Add 2 T peanut oil, let the oil heat for about 30 seconds, then add the minced garlic and sliced onion and stir fry 20 seconds, stirring the entire time.
- Then add the vegetables and salt all at once and continue to stir-fry about 4-5 minutes, stirring every 20-30 seconds.
- Cook until vegetables are just starting to soften.
- Then add Oyster Sauce and stir to coat all vegetables with sauce.
- Cook about 2 minutes more, stirring a few times. Serve hot.
More Amazing Stir-Fried Vegetables:
Garlic Lover's Vegetable Stir Fry
Garlic Lover's Vegetable Stir Fry is the perfect way to use garden vegetables like eggplant, zucchini, and yellow squash, but you can use any vegetables that you have.
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb. zucchini (see notes)
- 1/2 lb. yellow squash (see notes)
- 1/2 lb. eggplant (see notes)
- 2 T peanut oil (see notes)
- 2 T finely minced garlic (or less)
- 1 onion, sliced top to bottom in strips about 1/2 inch wide
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 3 T Oyster Sauce (see notes)
Instructions
- Cut vegetables into pieces that are the same size and same shape, cutting away the inner seeds from squash and larger eggplants before you cut them into short strips about 1/2 inch wide.
- Get oil, oyster sauce, salt, and measuring spoons out and have ready on the counter near the stove.
- Put wok or frying pan on the stove and heat 1-2 minutes, until it’s too hot to hold your hand over it. (You should be able to almost see the heat shimmering up from the wok.)
- Add the oil and heat about 30 seconds.
- Then add minced garlic and sliced onion and cook 20 seconds, stirring constantly.
- Add the rest of the vegetables all at once, add salt, and cook 4-5 minutes, stirring every 20-30 seconds, or until vegetables are barely starting to soften.
- Add oyster sauce, stirring gently so all the vegetables are coated with sauce.
- Cook about 2 minutes more, stirring a few times.
- Serve hot.
Notes
Use any combination of zucchini, yellow squash, and eggplant or substitute other vegetables you have on hand. Be sure all veggies are cut in same size pieces. If you substitute other veggies, harder vegetables like carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower should be added to the wok first and cooked a few minutes before you add the softer veggies.
Peanut Oil (affiliate link) is ideal for stir fry cooking, but you can use any neutral flavored oil that will hold up under high temperatures. Oyster Sauce (affiliate link) is widely available, look for it by the Asian foods in any supermarket. If you need gluten-free, be sure to get Gluten-Free Oyster Sauce (affiliate link). If you want a lower-carb version, switch some of the oyster sauce for soy sauce.
Recipe created by Kalyn with inspiration from Cooking from the Heart: The Hmong Kitchen in America. (affiliate link)
Nutrition Information
Yield
4Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 123Total Fat 7gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 0mgSodium 519mgCarbohydrates 14gFiber 3gSugar 5gProtein 2g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Garlic Lover’s Vegetable Stir Fry is relatively low in carbs, but if you’re making this for strict low-carb eating plans you may want to use my tip of replacing some of the oyster sauce with soy sauce. The recipe would need to have some of the Oyster Sauce replaced with soy sauce for the Original South Beach Diet as well. If your store has several brands of Oyster Sauce, choose the one with the lowest amount of sugar. If you need gluten-free, be sure to get Gluten-Free Oyster Sauce. (affiliate link)
Find More Recipes Like This One:
Check out Stir-Fry Recipes for more recipes like this one! Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.
Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This garlic vegetable stir fry was first posted in 2012, when I had a big vegetable garden and lots of summer veggies to use up! Now I make it mostly with veggies from the Farmers Market. The recipe was last updated with more information in 2024.
36 Comments on “Garlic Lover’s Vegetable Stir Fry”
I’m always looking for zucchini, squash and especially eggplant recipes due to the over abundance from the garden. Loved this! Simple, delicious and healthy!
Thank you for sharing this!
So glad you liked it!
Thank you! Fantastic – I see that you posted this back in 2012. I love it. I didn’t know about heating my pan before adding the oil and the Oyster sauce is the ingredient I think I’ve been missing.
So glad you enjoyed it Mary and that the stir-fry tips were useful for you!
The best instructions for the amazing taste. This dish will be a staple of my kitchen. Thank you!
Thank you; so glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks Debbie, so glad you're enjoying the recipes!
I tried this for lunch yesterday. It was delicious! You come up with the best recipes. I love that they often are gluten free and low (or no) sugar.
I have a carbon-steel wok that doesn't have a nonstick coating, but the one in these photos is from Costco, and does have a nonstick coating. I don't think heating for a few minutes is a problem, but if you do you could heat with oil in the pan.
I know you're not paid to endorse products, but I'm curious as to what kind of wok you use. My large frying pan has a nonstick coating, and I'm wary of heating it up without anything in it — based on the reports of the health danger it poses.
I always love stir fry vegetables easy to prepare and can be cooked without a sweat. I'll try this tonight. Thanks!
I'd look in the Asian section of the grocery store for things labeled "Stir Fry Sauce" and then check labels to find one that doesn't have ingredients you don't want.
Is there any substitute for the oyster sauce that you can recommend?
So glad to hear you liked it, and that it's working out as a way to use your veggies!
I loved this dish, we had it for supper tonight, and it was delicious. It was a great way to use the veggies I am getting from a local farm. Thanks!
Anonymous, that's great. Glad to hear you liked it.
Wow! I tried this today, and it was incredibly tasty! I've never stir-fried before either, and it came out incredibly well. I will definitely be making this again soon.
All meals are rich in vitamin a garlic flavor and adds a natural antibiotic and he is good in my swine flu
Kalyn,
Your beautiful and delicious stir-fry is very tempting. Having moved to Australia, I started to love eating zucchini (we seldom have it in Hong Kong), that goes really well with minced garlic indeed. Yeah, I'm a big garlic lover. I'd add minced garlic in every stir-frying dish. 😛
Your 5 principles of Chinese stir-frying are very helpful that would definitively ensure the best result.
As soon as I find Japanese eggplant at the store, I'm making this with all eggplant. The eggplant was teh best part!
I keep saying how tired of eggplant,I am and I keep finding these great recipes that are tempting me so I am using your blog to announce, I am not really tired of eggplant. It is too good to get tired of.
Love this stir fry.
Looks like what I fry up for breakfast. Great combo of veggies.
I could eat things like this for every meal! Beautiful Kalyn!
Waw ! It would be useful for food lovers, of course for me too. Thanks for the
This is such a simple recipe and I like that it really lets the ingredients shine. Great tips on stir-frying!
I love everything about this dish.
I always love learning something new. I wish I had viewed your recipe yesterday. I stir fried large yellow squash with the seeds intact and it turned out a mushy mess. The zucchini was fine. I still have half the yellow squash left for tonight…thanks for the tip, Kalyn.
Wanda
This looks delicious and sounds wonderful and fresh. I haven't had a good stir fry in months. I'll have to put it on the calendar. Thanks for the recipe.
thanks for the rules on stir fries! I love how you combined my favorite summer veggies with my favorite herb. There is no why this can be bad.
I always have basic Chinese condiments in my pantry, and with those — soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, chili paste with garlic — I can stir-fry almost any combination of ingredients. Throw some rice in a rice cooker before you begin to prep your stir-fry ingredients, and a whole meal comes together in minutes.
It's been a long time since I've stir-fried – it's one of the reasons I'm switching to a gas stove. A wok and an electric range just don't work! This is a beautiful dish, and the tips you've included are great.
I am going on a hill walk this afternoon and was looking for something quick and healthy to throw together afterwards…this is it!
Karina, I agree completely! I think it keeps the fresh flavor in the food compared to so many cooking methods!
Kara, hope you like it.
Lyn, it really is something where the technique is so important. I'm excited that I've encouraged you to try again. Such a great way to cook, once you've mastered it you can whip up something tasty in no time.
I have never mastered stir-frying. I gave up years ago, but you've inspired me to try again!
Excellent., I LoVe trying new dishes….thanks for the details on the stir fry, it is good to be reminded…
Stir-fry can save your life. Seriously. It's the one dish I can manage even if I'm bone tired. And it's always tasty. And I always think, Why don't I make stir-fry more often?