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Black Bean Stir-Fry

A stir-fry of shellfish or meat with black beans, garlic, ginger, chilies, scallions, and vegetables in a soy‑sesame sauce.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 17 ingredients
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Why it works: Clove and ginger match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,038 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Black Bean Stir-Fry

Serves 4
Time15 seconds

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Combine garlic, ginger root, chilies, scallion whites, and black beans in a small bowl.

  2. Combine ¼ cup stock, soy sauce, sugar, and sesame oil in another small bowl, then stir until sugar dissolves.

  3. Dissolve cornstarch in wine or sherry in a third small bowl.

  4. Scrub clams, if using.

  5. Cut shellfish into 1‑inch pieces or thinly slice poultry or meat.

Stir-fry

  1. Heat a wok over high heat just before serving.

  2. Swirl in canola oil.

  3. Stir‑fry onion and bell pepper for a minute.

  4. Add garlic and bean mixture, then cook for 15 seconds or until fragrant but not brown.

  5. Add seafood and stir‑fry for 1 minute.

  6. Add stock‑based sauce and cook for 2 to 5 minutes or until seafood is cooked.

  7. If necessary to prevent sticking, add remaining stock.

  8. If steaming clams, tightly cover wok.

Finish and serve

  1. Stir cornstarch mixture.

  2. Add it to the stir‑fry along with scallion greens and sliced vegetables.

  3. Bring sauce to a boil.

  4. Serve immediately along with white rice if desired.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

2265Calories
158 gProtein
77 gFat
223 gCarbs

Counts 23 of 24 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 23 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Pork100g cooked242
Salmon100g cooked208
Rice1 cup cooked (158g) white206
Chicken100g cooked165
Sesame1 tbsp (14g)120
Vegetable1 tbsp (14g)120
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Black Bean1/2 cup canned (120g) drained114
Shrimp100g cooked99
Crab100g cooked97
Pea1/2 cup (72g)62
Broccoli1 cup chopped (156g)55
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Bell Pepper1 medium (119g)31
Wine2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)25
Carrot1 medium (61g)25
Soy Sauce1 tbsp (15ml)9
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Ginger1 tsp grated fresh (2g)2
Shellfishnot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Clove + gingertop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together6,038 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  2. Clove + peppertop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together17,451 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  3. Garlic + beanstop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,935 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  4. Garlic + gingertop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,402 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Garlic + chickentop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together10,850 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-ethyl-2,5-dimethylpyrazine (roasted, nutty).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Chinese black beans
Add fermented, salty savoury depth that flavours the garlic and ginger base.
Cornstarch
Thickens the sauce as it comes to a boil, giving it a glossy, clinging texture.
Soy sauce
Provides salty, savoury flavour that seasons the whole stir-fry.
Shellfish or shrimp
Forms the main protein, cooking quickly and turning opaque when done.
Red bell pepper
Adds sweetness and crisp texture to the stir-fry.

The step that matters

Cook the garlic and bean mixture briefly. Garlic scorches quickly over high heat and turns bitter, so it should be cooked only about 15 seconds until fragrant, not browned.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (garlic, ginger, pepper, beans, chicken, sauce, sugar):

  1. Cuminfits better
  2. Turmericfits better
  3. Corianderfits better
  4. Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against garlic, ginger, pepper, beans, chicken, sauce, sugar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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