Cap Chay (Cap Cay) / Indonesian Stir-fried Vegetable

Cap Chay is a stir-fried medley vegetable with some meat and/or seafood with thick gravy. This easy one-pan stir-fry is going to be your go-to healthy delicious stir-fry any time of the week.

Almost every Saturday dad would bring us to this place that served delicious food Chinese food when we were young. It’s across the street from a used-to-be-popular cinema in town but the cinema was gone and replaced by a supermarket. They were well-known for their Hainanese pork chop and this Cap Chay. Those were the two things that we ordered every time we ate there. I’m not sure if this place is still there or not but boy…thinking of my childhood, this cay chay sure had been part of it often!

I love the thick glistening gravy (thanks to corn starch) that coats everything in that dish. I listed out the common vegetables, meat, and seafood used to make Indonesian cap chay, but feel free to use whatever veggies you like. That’s why the name is cap chay (mixed vegetable stir-fry). They are so good when served piping hot with a bowl of steamed white rice and other meat dishes. This cap chay is really satisfying and healthy at the same time. I love the colors too!

Cap Chay (Cap Cai) / Indonesian Stir-fried Vegetable

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Servings 4 servings

5 from 9 reviews

REVIEW & RATE PRINT

Ingredients

0.5x1x2x

• ▢ 1 cup chicken stock or water
• ▢ 2 Tbsp cooking oil

Protein:

• ▢ 100 gr boneless skinless chicken thigh thinly sliced
• ▢ 6 large prawns peeled and deveined, cut into smaller pieces if you wish
• ▢ 5 fish balls sliced

Vegetables:

• ▢ 50 gr sugar snap peas
• ▢ 10 large broccoli/cauliflower florets briefly blanch in boiling water
• ▢ 5-6 cremini mushrooms sliced
• ▢ 2 medium carrots thinly sliced
• ▢ 1 bunch yu choy/chinese broccoli washed and roughly cut into large pieces
• ▢ 1 large tomato cut into wedges

Aromatics:

• ▢ 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
• ▢ 1- inch ginger peeled and finely chopped
• ▢ 4 stalks green onion separate into white and green parts

Seasonings:

• ▢ 2 Tbsp oyster sauce
• ▢ ¼ tsp sugar
• ▢ Salt and white pepper powder to taste

Thickening agent:

• ▢ 2 Tbsp corn starch dissolved in 2 Tbsp water more if needed

Instructions

 

• Preheat wok or large skillet over high heat. Add cooking oil. Add aromatics and only white parts of green onion and stir fry until they are fragrant
• Add chicken meat. Saute for 1 minute. Add vegetables except for tomato wedges. Cook for about 5 minutes.
• Add in chicken stock, cover with a lid and let it simmer for about 1 minute. Lastly, add the shrimp, fish balls, and tomato wedges and stir fry for another 1 minute or so or until the shrimp turn pink. Add seasonings and stir to mix everything
• Add the green part of green onion. Have a taste and adjust to your liking. Give the cornstarch mixture a stir and pour into the wok and stir until the sauce is thickened and coats everything nicely
• Remove from the heat and place it on the serving plate. Serve immediately with rice and other dishes

RECOMMEDED TOOLS

Wok

Kitchen knife

Solid Turner

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HOW TO MAKE A REALLY GOOD CAP CAI

1. Preheat a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add cooking oil. Add aromatics and only white parts of green onion.

2. Add chicken meat. Saute for 1 minute.

3. Add vegetables except for tomato wedges. Cook for about 5 minutes.

4. Add in chicken stock, cover with a lid and let it simmer for about 1 minute. Lastly, add the shrimp, fish balls, and tomato wedges and stir fry for another 1 minute or so or until the shrimp turn pink. Add seasonings and stir to mix everything

5. Cover with a lid and cook for about 2 minutes

6. Add the green part of green onion. Give the cornstarch mixture a stir and pour it into the wok and stir until the sauce is thickened and coats everything nicely.

7. Remove from the heat and place it on the serving plate. Serve immediately with rice and other dishes.