Steve Lookner Tries Cooking Stir Fry

There is a new video on the Lookner channel on YouTube entitled “I Try To Cook Stir-Fry - LIVE STREAM”:

The video starts in Steve’s kitchen. We can see the counter and the stove. He jokes that it might be the “worst idea” he’s ever had. He says he’s hungry, because he hasn’t eaten all day since he’ll be making stir fry during the live stream. He mentions having cooked stir fry years ago, when just out of college, but he didn’t do it again and has completely forgotten how to. He has chosen a simple recipe, but insists that he’ll mess something up, and he doesn’t seem to be optimistic.

He has bought some chicken breast and steak, along with peanut oil, premade stir fry sauce, broccoli florets, and snow peas. Since he doesn’t have a wok, he’s just using the frying pan that he does have. He decides to use medium-high heat on the stove, and mentions that he has enough ingredients to try again if it does go bad. It looks like he’ll need to use the stove fan, so he turns it on to see if it’s too loud on the live stream.

Steve is filming the live stream using his webcam, which is connected to his computer in the other room using a USB hub and a long USB cable. The microphone is also connected to the USB hub. He has to use his iPad to see comments in the live chat, and to watch the video so he can see where he is in the frame, so that’s why he may be looking down a lot. He also indicates that he only has one pan, so the viewers will just have to accept that he’s using it!

He checks on his phone to see if he needs to wash the chicken breast, but he decides not to. He’s trying to follow a recipe, and goes over the plan. He isn’t using rice right now, since he’s trying to keep it simple. A viewer asks if he has a fire extinguisher handy, and Steve shows a large fire extinguisher he has under his sink.

Steve starts with preparing hte chicken breast. He takes one out and puts it on the cutting board. He’s not sure how large to cut the pieces, however. Members of the audience in the chat suggest “bite size” pieces or “strips”. He cuts a piece, and shows the camera. Some of the viewers say it’s fine in the live chat. Steve proceeds to cut the rest of the chicken breast into pieces. He jokes that he doesn’t care if the food is bad, he just doesn’t want to burn his apartment down! He shows the viewers the pieces that he cut, and doesn’t think that he’s messed it up so far.

Next, he moves on to the pan. He turns on the stove heat, and sets it to medium-high. He also puts some peanut oil in the pan, but doesn’t think it’s enough and so he adds some more. He also turns on the stove fan, and says that he does have renter’s insurance. He notices that the oil hasn’t really spread out in the pan yet.

The viewers in the live chat say to add the chicken, so he adds it to the pan, and it starts to cook. He notices that it’s getting brown on the outside, and he can hear the sizzling. The viewers say to cook it to “golden”, but he says it’s not there yet. Steve opts to err on the side of overcooking. Eventually he says he thinks that the pieces of chicken are done, and so he takes them off and shows the cooked pieces to the audience. A viewer suggests to cut one of the pieces and make sure that the inside isn’t pink. Steve shows a cut piece to the viewers, but it’s hard to see. He says it’s not pink at all.

Steve moves on to cooking the vegetables. He adds more oil to the now-empty pan, and opens the stir fry sauce so that it’s ready. He isn’t sure if he needs to wash the vegetables, but decides not to after noticing that one of the bags says they’re pre-washed. He puts some broccoli florets in the pan first, followed by the pea pods, and lets them cook. He’s not sure how much stir fry sauce to use, so he pours some in. He then adds the chicken back in, and says that one piece of broccoli has all of the sauce on it! He thinks it’s done, so he pours it from the frying pan onto a plate, and he shows the plate to the camera and the audience.

It’s time for a taste test, but he decides some salt may be needed. He starts with a piece of chicken, and it seems perfectly fine, other than needing some salt. He tries a pea pod, and it’s good, but oily. He tries some of the broccoli, and it’s good, too. He salts a piece of chicken. Steve describes what he made as “perfectly edible”, and thinks that the chicken needs more salt. He also puts the vegetables back into the fridge.

He notes that at least he knows what’s in the food that he’s eating. If he doesn’t get sick, it will be very good for his purposes. The viewers tell him to put the extra piece of chicken back in the fridge, and he says he’ll do it shortly. Assuming he doesn’t get sick, Steve says he’s happy with the outcome. He would be satisfied if he got food like it at a restaurant. He eventually wraps up the extra piece of raw chicken using plastic wrap, and puts it in the fridge.

The viewers tell him he should marinate his chicken. Steve says that he doesn’t know when he’ll eat, so he needs to be able to cook without much preparation. He answers some viewer questions from the live chat while eating. He does think it would go good with rice as he’s eating it. He likes that it’s simple, and it’s all that he wants. He reads the sauce ingredients, and says it worked well for his needs. He mentions that he doesn’t like eating while standing up, and he shows off the emptied plate. Steve says that he’s in the “clean plate club”. Once the stream is done he will clean the kitchen. He moves the camera and light so that he can sit and digest.

He confirms that his stove is off, but the light remains on because the surface is still hot. He indicates that the food was very good. He asks the viewers if the chicken will be good for another day, saying he’ll make it tomorrow. He stops to wrap up one other piece of chicken.

Steve asks the viewers for some suggestions about how to improve his cooking. It’s suggested that he season the meat, and get a thermometer. It’s also suggested that he put the sauce in the fridge, which he does. He says he’ll get a different pan if he’s doing more stir fry. As for different mixes of vegetables, he wants to get comfortable with simple ones first, and only then will he add others. He gets some food safety suggestions, and it’s suggested that he add peanuts or cashews.

He says he’s anxious about raw meat and anxious about “brain eating bacteria”, and that he’ll likely obsess over it. He now thinks that he should have read up on food safety before starting to cook. Viewers in the live chat suggest that he get a wok or a deeper pan. It’s also suggested that he won’t get mad cow disease from chicken! He says he bought about a pound-and-a-half, and cooked about 1/2 to 3/4 of a pound. He also says that he doesn’t want to get sick from the kitchen after, so he’ll have to clean it. The topic of shrimp comes up, and a viewer says that it cooks fast.

Steve says that assuming he doesn’t get sick, he would cook like this every day. All he wants for lunch is a bowl of meat and vegetables, but he can’t get it anywhere. He could just buy some stuff, and not have to worry about going out. He asks the viewers about ready-to-cook shrimp. He also remembers back to tenderizing chicken in the past, and removing some tendon or gristle or something.

He reads up about how to clean up after cooking raw meat. He asks about using a rag to wash, and what to do with it afterward. Viewers suggests he use cleaning spray and a paper towel, and rinse or wash any rags that are used. Steve decides to clean his kitchen during the live stream. He turns the camera around so the viewers can watch him clean. He puts the oil in the cabinet, and puts the raw material in a plastic bag to throw it down the trash chute. He leaves briefly to dispose of it right away. Steve mentions that he’ll probably cook more that night, and will probably make the same thing! He proceeds to wash the cutting board with soap and hot water, but he’s not sure if he’s cleaning it well enough. He washes his knife off next, and then wipes down the counter top and stove top with warm soapy water. He says that he has to read up about how to clean. Steve also mentions how he doesn’t leave his water running when doing something.

He adjusts the camera back so he can sit and chat with the viewers some more. He shows off the new microphone he’s using, and leaves briefly to use his computer to add info about the microphone to the video description. He says he bought some corn on the cob, so he’ll make some of it. He also says that his mom wanted him to do complex cooking. He thanks the moderators and audience, and says he has to leave to call his mom. He also hopes that he doesn’t get sick!

From what I can tell, Steve’s attempt at cooking went quite well, despite his initial skepticism and doubt. There were no major incidents, and the food turned out well in the end. Hopefully his fears about getting sick won’t amount to anything, too. I think he may be eating a lot of stir fry going forward!

• Karl