Get food fast that is healthy and delicious. Garlic bok choy is the easiest side dish to make that pairs well with any entreé.
Simply boil your bok choy and sauté it with garlic, oyster sauce, and chili pepper. Follow my easy recipe to make simple yet scrumptious garlic bok choy.
- What Is Bok Choy?
- Why Make Garlic Bok Choy
- How To Store And Reheat Garlic Bok Choy
- Cooking Suggestions For Garlic Bok Choy
- Kitchenware And Ingredients To Make Garlic Bok Choy
- How To Make Garlic Bok Choy
What Is Bok Choy?
Bok choy is a type of Chinese cabbage that is also called pak choi or pok choi. It is a superfood that is low in calories and carbohydrates and loaded with vitamins and minerals. Plus, it has several health benefits that you’ll love, from reducing inflammation to promoting a healthy heart and bones.
It can be cooked in many different ways, including boiled, stir-fried, and roasted. You can typically buy regular bok choy or baby bok choy. Baby bok choy is shorter and slightly sweeter than regular bok choy.
It is about 3 to 6 inches long with a white stem and a pack of green leaves. On the other hand, regular or mature bok choy is longer and tastes slightly bitter like spinach.
Bok choy has a crunchy stem with a cabbage-like taste. For this recipe, both types of bok choy can be used with minimal differences in taste and texture.
Why Make Garlic Bok Choy
Why is cooking garlic bok choy worth it? For starters, the flavor of garlic bok choy complements most dishes, whether stir-fried, soup, or noodles. It is healthy to eat since it is loaded with vitamins and antioxidants and is low in carbohydrates.
On top of that, it only takes about 15 to 20 minutes to cook this dish. It is fast and easy to prepare, making it the perfect side dish for a quick lunch or dinner.
Moreover, the cooking method is a breeze since you only have to boil the bok choy for a few seconds and sauté it with garlic and seasonings.
The overall taste of garlic bok choy pairs well with sweet or savory dishes. Try garlic bok choy with another popular side dish, Yu Choy Sum. You can also combine it with main dishes such as Tofu With Minced Pork & Mushrooms, Black Pepper Beef Stir-fry, and Homemade Ham Sui Gok.
How To Store And Reheat Garlic Bok Choy
Garlic bok choy should be consumed immediately for the best texture and flavor. However, if you plan to cook it in advance and eat it for later, keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. It is recommended to cover it to avoid absorbing odors from other dishes in the fridge.
For uncooked and raw bok choy, there are several ways to store it in the fridge and freezer to keep it longer for a few days before cooking the recipe.
Here are some storage tips for uncooked bok choy:
- Fridge: Do not wash the bok choy before storing it in the fridge since the moisture will cause it to spoil faster. You can keep it in a zipper bag or plastic bag with holes for air circulation or cover it entirely with aluminum foil. Store it in the crisper drawer of the fridge. Alternatively, bok choy can also be stored in a jar of cold water in the fridge. The stem should be upright and submerged in water while the leaves hang nicely out from the jar. It can be kept in the fridge for up to 5 days to a week.
- Freezer: For longer shelf life, store the bok choy in a freezer bag while ensuring no air is left inside. You can cut the base of the stem and clean the leaves with damp paper towels before storing them in the freezer. If stored correctly, it can be stored in the freezer for 8 to 12 months.
Cooking Suggestions For Garlic Bok Choy
Getting the most out of your bok choy can be achieved in several ways. It is important to consider effective cooking methods and ingredient alternatives when creating this recipe.
Take a look at my tips and alternatives below before starting to cook this recipe.
- Everything about bok choy: Choose the freshest bunch, whether you use regular or baby bok choy. The leaves should be green and fresh, while the stem should be white and firm. Avoid leaves that are yellow and dry or brown in color. Next, the bok choy should be cleaned with water and the base of the stem cut off before cooking.
- Garlic alternative: Aside from bok choy, garlic is another key ingredient in making this recipe. After all, the recipe is garlic bok choy, so it doesn’t really make sense to make it without garlic. In case you don’t have garlic cloves, you can replace 1 clove of garlic with 1/8 tsp of garlic powder or 1/4 tsp of granulated garlic. This will still give you that punch of garlic without the bits for texture.
- Oyster sauce alternative: Oyster sauce is a dark thick sauce that adds salty and briny flavors to the recipe. You can substitute oyster sauce with fish sauce, hoisin sauce, or “oyster” flavored sauce.
- Chili pepper: Chili pepper contributes to the smoky and sweet flavors of the recipe. It makes the dish spicy, so only add the appropriate amount according to your tolerance for spicy flavors. If you don’t have chili pepper, you can use chili flakes instead. Use 1/4 tsp of chili flakes for one chili pepper.
- Chicken bouillon powder: The purpose of chicken bouillon powder is to give the recipe a pack of meaty and savory flavors. If you don’t have chicken bouillon powder, you can use canned chicken broth, Italian seasoning mix, or vegetable bouillon powder.
Kitchenware And Ingredients To Make Garlic Bok Choy
Simple grocery store ingredients are needed for this recipe, including bok choy, garlic, and oyster sauce, to name a few. The only important aspect in picking out what you need is to make sure you get the best quality bok choy. For this recipe, you will need the following items:
Kitchenware
- Pot or pan for boiling and stir-frying
- Spatula for stirring
Ingredients
- Water for boiling
- 1 tbsp oil for boiling
- 2 tbsp oil for sautéing
- 3 tbsp minced garlic cloves
- 1 small chili pepper (thinly sliced)
- A pack of bok choy
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
How To Make Garlic Bok Choy
The steps in this recipe include boiling the bok choy and stir-frying it with the rest of the ingredients. The cooking part is quite fast, it will just take a bit of time to prepare the vegetables, from chopping and cleaning bok choy to mincing the garlic cloves. Other than that, the steps are easy to follow and straightforward.
See how I make garlic bok choy in my tutorial videos on Tiktok and Instagram.
Prepare the bok choy by cutting the base of the stem and washing all leaves with water.
Then, fill a pot or pan with water and bring to a boil. Once it boils, add 1 tbsp of oil and boil the bok choy for 10 seconds. Be careful not to overcook the bok choy or else the leaves will wilt.
After 10 seconds, take out the bok choy and drain.
Next, heat about 2 tbsp of oil in a pan.
Once the oil is hot, sauté the minced garlic until fragrant.
Then, add the sliced chili pepper, bok choy, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder, and 1 tbsp oyster sauce.
Mix the ingredients well and stir fry, stirring back and forth about 5 times. The bok choy should soften and have absorbed the seasonings.
Serve and enjoy while fresh and hot.
Simple Yet Scrumptious Garlic Bok Choy
Equipment
- Pot or pan for boiling and stir-frying
- Spatula for stirring
Ingredients
- Water for boiling
- 1 tbsp oil for boiling
- 2 tbsp oil for sautéing
- 3 tbsp minced garlic cloves
- 1 small chili pepper thinly sliced
- A pack of bok choy
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
Instructions
- Prepare the bok choy by cutting the base of the stem and washing all leaves with water.
- Then, fill a pot or pan with water and bring to a boil.
- Once it boils, add 1 tbsp of oil and boil the bok choy for 10 seconds. Be careful not to overcook the bok choy or else the leaves will wilt.
- After 10 seconds, take out the bok choy and drain.
- Next, heat about 2 tbsp of oil in a pan.
- Once the oil is hot, sauté the minced garlic until fragrant.
- Then, add the sliced chili pepper, bok choy, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder, and 1 tbsp oyster sauce.
- Mix the ingredients well and stir fry, stirring back and forth about 5 times. The bok choy should soften and have absorbed the seasonings.
- Serve and enjoy while fresh and hot.
