Orange Sweet Potato Stir Fry has gently stir fried harvest autumn vegetables tossed with a light ginger orange sauce and topped with toasted pine nuts.
What do you make to eat when it is clean out the refrigerator day?
Inspiration for me always comes from the fresh produce and fruits in the crisper.
I was testing my dad’s theory on how items, that are harvested together from the garden, go together perfectly. I think he is really on to something. I had sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, red radishes, snow peas and aromatics on the list and was well on my way to creating orange sweet potato stir fry.
Have you ever tried stir frying red baby radishes?
They turn very sweet and delicious when they hit the heat. I love the sweet tender potatoes together with the crisp the snow peas and the crunch from the toasted pine nuts. I am keenly aware of textures in recipes and all soft foods or all crunchy foods are just plain boring to me. I like to mix it up and a little and enjoy a little of both in my dishes. How about you?
Why you are going to love our recipe for Orange Sweet Potato Stir Fry
The delicately sweet and savory sauce of simple ginger, garlic, star anise, fresh orange juice, aromatics and coconut oil is all you need to enjoy a quick bowl of comforting orange sweet potato stir fry.
This delicious Chinese Stir Fry is happily gluten-free, vegan, cardiac friendly and if you swap out the regular potatoes for all sweet potatoes this recipe it is Paleo friendly as well.
We make our fair share of soups and Pantry fried rice on clean out the refrigerator day but this Orange Sweet Potato Stir Fry has it all going on as it is slightly sweet, savory, tongue numbing from the star anise and tart from the little bit of orange zest.
Traditional Chinese Medicine and Food Choices
According to Chinese Medicine, ginger, garlic, star anise and pine nuts are warming foods. Oranges and radishes are cooling foods and sweet potato and regular potatoes are neutral foods. In this orange sweet potato stir fry, you have a nice balance of warming, cooling and neutral foods and this helps keep your body balanced. To learn more about how food choices affect you from a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective, please read our Introduction to the Five Energies of Food.
It is this time of the year with the change of seasons and wind that make people most apt to catch the cold and flu, if your body is stressed. If you keep your body balanced, keep the stress level low, sleep well and stay away from snotty little kids you have a better chance of staying healthy this fall. Take care of yourself, a gentle reminder from your friendly nurse!
More Quick and easy Chinese stir fry dishes
Spicy Stirfried Romaine Lettuce
Shrimp and Wild Rice Stem Stir Fry
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Orange Sweet Potato Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp coconut oil or olive oil
- 1 inch ginger
knob grated fresh - 2 cloves garlic
peeled and minced - 3 whole star anise
(or can use 1/4 teaspoon 5 spiced powder) - 1 sweet potato large peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes
- 1 potato
peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes - 8 radishes
trimmed edges and cut in half - salt and pepper
to taste - 4 tbsp orange juice
fresh (half to cook the potatoes in and save the other half for the end of the cooking process - 1/2 cup snow peas
edges removed and strings removed and chopped to be about the same size as potatoes - 1 tsp orange zest
- 1/4 cup pine nuts toasted or nut of choice
Instructions
- Heat coconut oil in pan and add ginger, garlic and star anise just until they are aromatic. Add your chopped sweet potatoes, regular potatoes (hold regular potatoes if staying paleo), radishes, salt and pepper to taste and 1/2 of the fresh squeezed orange juice. Put a lid on your pan and turn your heat to medium low and allow to steam for about 3-5 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender.
- Remove the lid, add the snow peas and cook until bright green about 1-2 minutes. Add orange zest and about 2 tablespoons (or a little squeeze) of fresh orange juice and toss quickly. Adjust seasonings as required and add your pine nuts for a one last quick toss and serve immediately. Enjoy!
I’ve never sauteed red baby radishes – I cannot wait to now that I know they become sweet – Bobbi, this is one delicious stir fry – love the combo of anise and orange
I think is one stir fry that your daughter will love. If you can get diakon radishes they are delicious as well.
I love the combination of flavours as always, I’m always learning so many new stir-fry dishes from you, yums!
Star anise is so neglected! I love the colors of this dish Bobbi and I am sure the taste is equally delicious! Spreading some love around!
This looks absolutely delicious! Loving all your use of star anise recently.. one of my favorite flavors 🙂 Pinned!
Love all of it! And so pretty. And I bet so tasty. And I love star anise!
Very nice, colorful and fragrant stir fry, this is a must share recipe.
Such a bright and fresh looking dish! I wouldn’t mind a bowl of this at lunchtime!
This is a really vibrant dish, never had thought of using sweet potatoes in stir fry, I was grown using sweet potatoes for desserts and stews
What a nice mix of vegetable for a stirfry. One doesn’t see radish used much nor star anise. What an underrated spice. It’s got such a lovely flavor and love seeing how you’ve used it here. Great dish Bobbi!
What a delicious and healthy looking salad!
Thanks for sharing
Julie
Gourmet Getaways
That’s such an interesting point about the pairing of soft and crunchy foods, Bam! It totally makes sense that all one texture = boring. What I really love here (apart from all those amazing veggies just for being what they are) is to orange and those toasty pine nuts. Pine nuts add a LOT of interest value to a dish. I’d definitely order this in a restaurant!
Thank you Helen for your sweet comment! Do you ever noticed with salads how it is fun to have crispy things and creamy things and nuts just for the change of texture? We are complicated creatures… LOL I feel the same way about stir fries.
Mmm! I never thought about star anise with sweet potatoes. I bet that’s fantastic! Great stir fry round-up too. They are great clean out the fridge, weeknight meals!
Star Anise is a really diverse spice that can be used with both sweet and savory dishes. I love the tongue numbing spice of the star anise.
This is indeed a pretty, colorful veggie side dish with great texture. And it’s super healthy too!
Colorful stir fries are always the best as we always eat with eyes first. Thank you.
This is such a pretty dish and sounds so good! 🙂
Thank you Nancy
This is gorgeous and something that would tickle my tastebuds with every bite. I love how it looks!
I am so glad you like this simple dish Maureen. Congratulations on winning the Crazy Sales giveaway. Let me know if you do not either hear from them or receive delivery within the next 2 weeks. Take care
I’ve been hoarding my pine nuts since they’re so expensive right now! This is a recipe worth using them for. So fresh and delicious! Pinning 🙂
Tell me about it! What is up with the price of pine nuts? You can also exchange with pecans, almonds or even cashews is you wish. I just happened to have just about a handful of pine nuts left to use up. Thanks so much Sandra.
Love stir-frys. And the sound of this dish so intriguing! Orange + sweet potato must be an awesome combo. Star anise sounds great. 🙂
Thank you Anu! Orange and sweet potato is so delicious together. I never follow a recipe but just look around my crisper and pantry for inspiration and there is always something new to be tried.
I’ve never stir-fried radishes or sweet potatoes. It looks great! I love the balance in textures and flavors and the warming/cooling aspects. What a great ‘clean the fridge’ dish! I need to think outside the box more.
It is so funny how we have changed hats. You are baking up a storm and I am giving my wok a work out.. LOL
Love the star anise. I do like meals with good texture. What a pretty stir-fry – so many colours. I’m quite sure I’ve never had a sweet potato stir-fry xx
thanks charlie! Do you remember our moms telling us to eat the rainbow as it is good for you, I guess I was aiming for that goal. Give it a try and it is so quick and easy.
Such a colourful and healthy stir fry. Don’t think I have ever thought to stir fry sweet potato – such a great idea!
Have a beautiful weekend Bam.
🙂 Mandy ox
Thank you Mandy! You can stir fry anything your little heart desires but with firmer vegetables you just need to steam with a little bit of liquid in the wok with a lid for just a few minutes until just fork tender…
I just love star anise…especially in cocktails, but this doesn’t look too bad either!
Me too! I love star anise and that tongue numbing sensation.
Dave does not eat radishes but I am going to try frying some the next time I make stir fry for one. We make soup or pasta on clean up day 🙂
Stir frying and roasting radishes makes them taste mild and slightly sweet. Love that so much! Pasta and soup are great ways at the end of the week to clean out the inventory!
It’s interesting that radishes are thought of as cooling foods. With their somewhat sharp or “spicy” flavor I’d have thought warming. Although the more I think about it, the effect isn’t at all the same as garlic or particularly ginger. So much to learn! But first, need to make this dish — such a nice array of ingredients. Thanks!
Hello John, I know it sounds kind of odd but daikon radishes and western radishes fall into the cooling category even though they have that spicy bite to them. Sometimes Chinese medicine can be so confusing…Wishing you and your family a super weekend!