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Category: Bok Choy

  • Lemon Garlic Bok Choy

    Bok Choy! It’s not just for stir fries and Asian dishes!

    Bok Choy is a brassica and is related to broccoli, cabbage, kale and Brussels sprouts so when life gives me Bok Choy and I don’t want a stir fry, I cook Bok Choy like broccoli or kale or, prepare it raw like cabbage in a slaw.

    Probably everyone has prepared kale or Brussels sprouts by heating olive oil in a pan, add garlic, salt and pepper-add vegetables and sauté until done to your liking-squirt some lemon on it and you’re done. Super happy right?

    Let’s cook our Bok Choy like that, sort of channeling sauteed lemon garlic broccoli, (except I didn’t have any garlic how do I not have garlic? :-/ I used a shallot).

    I wanted my Bok Choy to be reminiscent of  broccoli so I left the stalks long and chopped the shallot like I would garlic.

    Heat a pan to medium high add some olive oil and the shallot (or garlic).

    Then I added the Bok Choy and some salt and pepper. It looks like a lot but it cooks down.

    Let that sear for 3 or 4 minutes, don’t mess with them, then turn them with some tongs.

    Let them sear on that side for another 3 or 4 minutes (don’t fuss with them) and turn again until they are done to your liking. If some of the pieces get done before the others move them to a plate until the rest are done.

    When they are all cooked through plate them and give them a squeeze of lemon and little more salt and pepper and voila. Lovely side dish.

    The different textures of the stalk and the leaf of the Bok Choy are really nicely contrasted in this method of cooking. It really is very reminiscent of broccoli  prepared this way.

    One of the challenges of being a CSA member is thinking outside the box with your weekly bounty, when you do, the reward is the joy and satisfaction of a simple delightful satisfying dish.

    Have a great week.

    Mo

  • Easy Grilled Bok Choy

    Olive oil, salt and pepper is my go to method for cooking most vegetables. Sometimes I grill, sometimes I sauté or blanch or broil.  Today I grilled.

    Easy as 1-2-3. Takes about 10 minutes.

    Coat vegetables in olive oil and season them with salt and pepper. Often times I add oil or butter with either garlic or onions in a separate pan for a simple sauce to finish the dish. I had some green garlic so I added that today.

    Grill on a medium hot grill for 4 or 5 minutes each side. The green garlic and butter ‘sauce’ is in the little pan on the upper left.

    Yum. That char on the edges is so good with the garlic butter and crunchy bok choy.

    This is a great side dish for just about anything you are having. I really like this with grain or rice bowls or just some grilled fish. It’s so versatile. I love bok choy! Hope you are enjoying yours!

     

     

     

     

  • Bok Choy Stir Fry-Make Ahead Sauce

    I really got into Asian-ish cooking during the pandemic. I love how vegetable heavy it is and how adaptable the cuisine is to almost anything you have on hand.

    I made a super easy Bok Choy and tofu dish with a super easy sauce.

    This is what I had, Bok choy, garlic, ginger, tofu and some sauce I premade. The recipe is below.

    I chopped it up.

    I cooked the tofu in some oil. After it was brown I moved it to a plate.

    Then I sautéed some garlic and ginger root and cooked the Bok Choy until it was just wilted.

    Now add 1/2 to 2/3 cup of sauce and let that thicken.

    Plate and serve can you see that yummy sauce? We ate this with rice.

    I like to make this batch of stir fry sauce and have it on hand for quick meals or to clean out the vegetable drawer. This sauce recipe makes about 3 or 4 meals and uses just a few ingredients you can find at most supermarkets. You just put everything into a jar and shake it.

    Stir Fry Sauce

    • 1 1/2 cups chicken stock (or vegetable or mushroom stock)
    • 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or dry cooking sherry
    • 1 tablespoon brown sugar (or granulated sugar, maple syrup, agave)
    • 2 teaspoons sesame oil
    • 1/4 cup soy sauce (can sub gluten-free soy sauce or tamari)
    • 1 1/2 tablespoons dark soy sauce (BBQ sauce works too)
    • 2 tablespoons oyster sauce (or vegetarian or gluten-free oyster sauce)
    • 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
    • 1/4 teaspoon salt
    • 4 tablespoons cornstarch

    Combine everything in a jar and shake it up. Store leftovers in the refrigerator to use later. This makes enough for at least 3 meals for 4 people.

    Store the extra in the refrigerator, it will keep for at least 2 weeks.

    Phew, this was a long post. If you stuck with me to the end, thank you!

    See you at pick up!

    Mo

  • Braised Bok Choy

    Word has it there is a lot of bok choy in the field so I wanted to add one more fast delicious prep for the bok choy you are getting this week.

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    Bok choy is a substantial vegetable that can stand alone as a main dish or as a side.  When you braise it the liquid you use becomes a tasty sauce you can serve with rice, grains, pasta or potatoes.

    Make sure you wash your bok choy really well, especially around the stem area. They are a little bit like leeks, that they hang onto soil around their stems. See?

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    Braised Bok Choy

    1 bunch of bok choy, washed and halved. Don’t worry if some leaves fall off, just throw them in the pan to cook with the intact halves

    1 tablespoon sesame oil, butter, or olive oil, your choice

    1 cup chicken, vegetable stock, I used 1/2 coconut milk and 1/2 water

    Salt + pepper

    I added a handful of leeks and green garlic too.

    Bring water and butter or oil to a simmer over medium heat in a large sauté pan. Add bok choy and other vegetables if you are using any, the liquid won’t cover the vegetables, that is ok. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook about 5 minutes or until stalks are tender. Transfer the vegetables to a shallow serving dish  and cover them to keep them warm. Taste the liquid and decide if you want to  reduce it or make it thicker, or maybe it’s ok? I added a little corn starch to mine this time to thicken it up. Most times I reduce it down to about half. Whatever you decide when you are happy with how it tastes, pour the braising liquid over the bok choy, tasted again if it needs any more salt or pepper and enjoy. 

    We had our bok choy with fish and rice. This isn’t a great picture but I am adding it to show you the braising liquid, see in the bottom right? There isn’t much left, it is absorbed by the vegetables, but it is very tasty and ties the dish together, with a little squeeze of lime and we are done in less than the amount of time it took to cook the rice.

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    Have a great week and I’ll see you at pickup.

    Mo

  • Miso Soup with Bok Choy

    Wyatt suggested this healthy quick meal because it is so adaptable to any array of vegetables that may come your way via CSA.

    I used bok choy, green garlic, a handful of kale, soba noodles and an egg. But feel free to replace or add any vegetables or protein you have.

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    Here is the basic recipe, it makes enough for 2 bowls and takes about 10 minutes to make.

    • 3 ounces dried soba noodles
    • 2 – 4 tablespoons miso paste (to taste I used white miso, I like red too)
    • 4 cups of water or broth
    • 2 – 3 ounces firm tofu or 2 eggs or chicken
    • a handful vegetables washed and chopped
    • 2 or 3 green onions or green garlic (garlic scapes would work too) finely chopped
    • Grated fresh ginger to taste- I used about 2 tablespoons

     

    • Cook the soba noodles in salted water, drain, run cold water over the noodles to stop them from cooking,  set aside.
    • In a medium sauce pan bring 4 cups of water or broth to a boil. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and add the chopped vegetables, onions and garlic and simmer for 3-5 minutes until they are just cooked.
    • Pour a bit of the hot water (or broth) into a small bowl and whisk in the miso paste – so it thins out a bit and keeps the miso from clumping.

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    • When the vegetables are cooked turn off the heat and stir the miso into the pot. You don’t want to boil the miso because will kill the probiotics in it. Taste, and then add more (the same way) until it is to your liking. Taste and see if it needs any salt, some misos are saltier than others.

    Split the noodles and grated ginger between two  bowls, and pour the miso broth over them and divide up the vegetables between the bowls.

    Serve and enjoy!

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  • Bok Choy “Chop Chop” Salad

    Bok Choy is a great base for salads and a great way to use up leftover vegetables you have hanging around in your refrigerator. This isn’t really a recipe, it’s just ‘here’s how I did it, now you make it with what you have’ method.

    I needed a big salad for a pot-luck BBQ so I took my “week 2 CSA share” of salad worthy ingredients and chopped them up. I used my bok choy, pea shoots, haukari turnips, and some walking onions leftover from week 1 CSA share.

    Here they are all chop-chopped up.

    Chopped Vegetables

    I had some avocado, macadamia nuts, red onions, and cucumbers in my refrigerator so I added those with an Asian salad dressing, just whisk this all together and pour over your salad.

    • 1/3 cup rice vinegar
    • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
    • 2 tablespoons honey
    • 1 tablespoon grated peeled ginger
    • 3 tablespoons olive oil
    • 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

    Salad with Dressing

    This is one of those salads that travels well and is good the next day.

    Have a great week, now go play with your food!