Bok Choy Stir Fry

Quick, healthy garlicky Bok Choy stir fry that presents a fresh, crunchy, and good flavor. It can be one of the most important sources of fiber. I always believe that great flavors can come from basic ingredients. The bok choy is cooked until crisp-tender, then tossed with lots of garlic, light soy sauce, and dried peppers. Another mild version is minced garlic and oyster sauce.

What’s Bok Choy

Bok choy, also known as Bai Cai (白菜) which is quite a large group in Chinese vegetables, is a type of Chinese cabbage that is very popular across the world. It is featured by the white stems and dark green leaves. Bok Choy is widely used in wonton soups, noodles, or other soups. It is believed to be super beneficial to the human body.  Bok Choy is super low in calories and fat, and it is a good source of vitamins A and C. As a year-round vegetable, you can purchase Bok Choy almost every season of the year.

Types of Bok Choy

But there are different varieties in this large group of Bok Choy.

Large Bok Choy

This large bok choy has a firmer and longer stem with slightly curled leaves. The stems are almost common. This type is often cooked in stir-fries sometimes with protein like beef, chicken, and shrimp. It is less popular in soups and noodles.

Shanghai Bok choy

This type usually has a much greener and shorter stem, contains more water, and thus is much more tender than the previous type. In most cases, bok choy is referring to this type. It is widely used in quick stir fry, soups, and noodles. Sometimes, you may find a smaller bok choy named baby bok choy. They are the same group! Baby bok choy is harvested quite early.

🧂Seasonings that can go well with bok choy stir fry

1. garlic — the main garlicky flavor source. Recommend using a larger amount..
2. light soy sauce — light soy sauce can add an umami flavor to the dish while oyster sauce can add a more complex and thicker flavor. Choose one of them.
3. salt to taste– Spare salt is used since we have soy sauce included.
4. dried chili pepper– this is optional only use it if you want the dish to be slightly spicy. But avoid overwhelming super hot variety because this dish should not be cooked as a very hot dish. Note: you can use red pepper flakes as a substitute for dried chili peppers, however, they should be added at the very end to avoid a burnt taste.
5. Oyster sauce – oyster sauce is a sweet and savory sauce that can be used to make a milder, savory flavor that can go well with the crunchy texture of bok choy.

Blanch or not blanch

When cooking some of the vegetables for example lotus root, broccoli, and cauliflower, it is necessary to blanch the vegetables. I love to cook bok choy raw with high fire to keep the multiple layers of texture and flavors. You can also choose to blanch the bok choy and add an oyster-based sauce over it. That’s a much softer version. You can taste both types and choose your favorite.

Drain the bok choy after washing

After washing, the Bok Choy, remember to drain it. Too much water will kill the heat of the pan and make the garlic bok choy stir fry watery, meaning fail to attach the flavors.

Heat the wok first is the key

Heat the wok or skillet until hot before adding the oil. Make sure the wok is heated enough so the bok choy is stir-fried within 1 or 2 minutes which further guarantees the green color.

Prepare the ingredients by hand

Since bok choy stir fry is very fast, it is important to prepare all the ingredients by hand. After adding the garlic, we need to add Bok Choy very quickly because the garlic gets burnt very quickly in a hot wok. Don’t waste time go and fetch stuff.

What to serve with this?

This garlicky bok choy stir fry is delicious on its own but it will be super good as a side dish with proteins like grilled meat, braised meat and etc. Recommend red braised pork belly, pan-fried crispy pork belly.

🔪Instructions for the hot version

Watch the size of the Bok Choy and choice the ways of treating it. If the Bok Choy is quite large in size, meaning it is older. Then separate each piece and discard the old pieces! For smaller and tender Bok Choy, trim the ends of the Bok Choy, discard any yellow leaves, and cut the Bok Choy into flour pieces. Wash carefully!

Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat until hot. First, add oil and swirl to coat the wok. Add chili pepper to fry until aromatic, then place the garlic and closely followed with Bok choy.

Chopped garlic is super easy to burn in a hot wok. so be quick with this step. Bok choy can bring down the temperature immediately and avoid burnt bitter garlic.

Add soy sauce, and salt. Stir-fry very quickly until the sauce is well combined. Serve hot!

🥘Instructions for the garlic and oyster sauce version

Prepare the bok choy: watch the size of the Bok Choy and choice the ways of treating it. If the Bok Choy is quite large in size, meaning it is older. Then separate each piece and discard the old pieces! For smaller and tender Bok Choy, trim the ends of the Bok Choy, discard any yellow leaves, and cut the Bok Choy into flour pieces. Wash carefully! Drain.

Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat until hot. Add oil and swirl to coat. Add garlic and fry for 8-10 seconds.

Then place the garlic and follow with bok Choy. Quickly fry for half a minute over high fire. Add oyster sauce. Quickly mix well.

Other ways of cooking Bok Choy

1. Bok Choy Soup with tofu
2. Quick bok choy stir fry with garlic and oyster sauce