I’ve read a lot of personal-growth books, and I can tell you that they all say the same the thing. Whether they’re about finding love, moving on, leading a richer life or discovering your purpose, it all comes down to two words: acceptance and gratitude.
A few months ago, I came across The Surrendered Single by Laura Doyle. Once I got over the funny title, I saw that the premise was once again the same: don’t try to change him (acceptance) and focus on what you love about him rather than what ticks you off (gratitude). But there was also another little nugget in there I warmed to: the idea that there is no perfect partner, rather an imperfect person who’s perfect for you. Which, if you think about it, is just another way of saying the same thing: get over yourself and embrace what you’ve got, whether you're in love or singledom.
I’ve always been intensely intrigued by that elusive little devil called chemistry. How someone can spark outrageous flames in your heart while another won’t cause so much as a flutter is infinitely fascinating to me. And the fact that the person who ignites such passions in you often turns out to be far from your idea of perfect fills me with awe for the mysterious workings of human nature.
Perfect imperfection. I was thinking about this as I was making everybody’s favourite standby: the stir-fry. There might be a few fundamentals in the preparation, yet my idea of a perfect stir-fry is probably quite different from yours. Google “stir fry”, and you get 4,020,000 results (and quite a discrepancy about whether there should be a hyphen). One thing is certain: stir-frying, like romance, needs to be devoid of measurements. It’s much more satisfying – and I’d say essential – to dispense with rigidity and just go with the flow. Just make sure you keep things moving – in this case over high heat.
This is the stir-fry that does it for me. There’s nothing fancy about it. It fills me up. It’s good to my body. It’s always dependable. It’s nice to look at and even better to taste. So, tell me, what’s perfectly imperfect about yours?
My Perfect Stir-Fry
King Soba Noodle Culture brown rice and millet noodles
Mild olive oil
Carrots
Celery
Broccoli
Garlic clove
Fresh ginger
Mushrooms
Tofu
Light tahini
Tamari
Raw cashews
Toasted sesame seeds
Put a pot of water to boil and set a wok over high heat. Cut the carrots into matchsticks, slice the celery and add to the wok along with a little water. While the vegetables steam, cut the broccoli into small florets, rinse them and add to the wok (with more water if necessary). When the broccoli’s green amps up (about a minute), transfer all the veggies to a plate.
Add some olive oil to the wok, then mince the garlic and ginger and throw them in. Place the noodles in the pot of the now boiling water. Quarter the mushrooms and add to the wok. Stir, stir, stir. Slice the tofu and add it in, too. Sizzle, sizzle. Meanwhile, quickly mix about one part tahini to four parts tamari in a small bowl.
Push the mushrooms and tofu up to the side of the wok and add a little more oil to the center. Drain the noodles and add them to the oil, breaking them up with a long wooden fork. Now add the vegetables back in along with the cashews, sauce and sesame seeds. Keep stirring everything together vigorously for a few more seconds.
That's mine. Now show me yours...



