Bok Choy Tips

Look for a plant with firm stalks that is free of brown spots. Wrapped in paper towels and stored in the vegetable crisper section of the refrigerator, bok choy should keep for up to a week.

You'll often find recipes calling for bok choy to be stir-fried with a bit of garlic or perhaps ginger. Oyster sauce and bok choy make an excellent combination; soy sauce is another good choice. If desired, add a bit of cornstarch to the sauce to thicken. Alternately, drizzle a bit of sesame oil over the cooked bok choy before serving. For that matter, you can forego cooking bok choy altogether - the raw stalks make a great mid-afternoon snack. Just remember that there's no need to limit your enjoyment of bok choy to those times when you are preparing Chinese food. With its sweet flavor and crisp texture, bok choy works well with a variety of foods. Feel free to experiment and use it as a substitute for cabbage in other dishes. I recently stumbled across an interesting variation on cabbage rolls using bok choy leaves and Asian seasonings. Or how about corned beef and bok choy? The possibilities are endless!

Cooking Times for Bok Choy

* Boiling 3 - 4 minutes for the stalks, 1 - 1 1/2 minutes for leaves.
* Steaming about 6 minutes for the stalks, 2 - 3 minutes for leaves
* Stir-fry about 5 minutes for stalks, 2 minutes for leaves - the leaves should be just wilted and bright green.
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