Hello everyone! A few weeks ago, it was the Lunar New Year and it was also the point at which my life took a turn for the better. I received an awesome job offer from a digital creative boutique in New York City; the car I crashed was getting fixed for much less than I’d anticipated. But one of the highlights of my Dragon Year so far was finally cooking my dad’s Baby Bok Choy the way we had it at home – and it was yummy!
We had bought a Groupon for Meat House in Brookline and Alex went and got some of their House Marinated chicken (which is delicious by the way). So we let them marinate with a few onions and made kabobs. Usually, Alex would probably add some squash and peppers to the skewers, but I am notoriously picky when it comes to veggies and he didn’t want to waste food. Alex also told me he didn’t want to have only meat for dinner because, with my impending move to NYC, there was a chance I would never eat vegetables again. And in light of the Lunar New Year, I should make something that my parents made.
After a phone call home (where my parents actually laughed when I said I was trying to cook – thanks, guys) and a trip to Super 88 down the block, I was ready to take a stab at my favorite childhood veggie – Baby Bok Choy. I bought a small bag of them when I was at Super 88, since it was just Alex and I for dinner.
Alex helped me heat the grill out on the balcony and while I waited, I skewered the chicken and cut up the greens so they would be ready for cooking. I learned from a few of my other Culinarily Challenged experiences that getting everything ready beforehand was a much better way to approach things than to try and multi-task in the heat of the moment. I’m not quite at the stage where I can multi-task and stay calm and collected about it when cooking. I figure that will come with time and then I’ll become more efficient at cooking.
After skewering the chicken, I began to cut and wash my veggies. It’s not absolutely necessary to cut the ends off of the Bok Choy, but I personally like having them as individual pieces of vegetables, rather than a whole stalk. I ran it under the sink and took a wok out. I don’t think it’s necessary to use the wok; if you have a frying pan and a cover for it that you can find, I’m sure it would work too. As with all things cooking, I wouldn’t take my word for it, though. It was about this time that Alex went to put the chicken on the small grill that we have.
While he was tending to the chicken, I started on the Bok Choy. Things I used:
- Baby Bok Choy
- Olive Oil
- Fish Sauce
- 1 tsp Chicken Boullion
- 2 – 3 cloves of garlic (depending on how much you like garlic. We love garlic.)
- 1/4 cup of water
And that’s it! It’s super easy to make, which is probably why I was so successful at it on the first try.
I heated up the wok on medium and put in a bit of olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Then, I dropped in the chopped up garlic. I dumped all the Bok Choy in shortly after the familiar sizzling sound could be heard from the garlic cooking in the oil.
The hardest part, for me, was telling when it was ready for the next step. I carefully turned the veggies over so that the garlic was evenly spread out. I used a wooden spoon, but I probably should’ve used tongs for easier maneuvering.
I waited until the leaves started to shrink and the Bok Choy was no longer looking as though it would overflow from the pan, which took about 2 – 3 minutes. At that time, I added in the 1/4 cup of water and put the lid on over it. This is where the steaming part of the cooking process comes in. Again, I wish I could tell you exactly how long I left it in there, but if I had to estimate, I would say it was another 2 – 3 minutes.
Once I took the lid off, I immediately added in the Chicken Boullion, stirring it in and turning the heat down to Low. I didn’t want too much more of the water of evaporate.
Side Note: I don’t know what they put in Chicken Boullion, but it is absolutely magical.
I added in a pinch of salt and then the Fish Sauce – to taste. It depends on how you like it so I would recommend taking a small taste of the sauce that all of these ingredients plus the water make up. I personally love the taste of Fish Sauce so I put a lot in there, but for those of you who are new to Asian foods, you might want to go easy on it for the first time. I took it off the burner after another minute on the heat and served it up with the chicken and rice that Alex had been helping me make in parallel with this.
This is what our finished meal looked like:
And the best part of this whole thing? It was absolutely delicious! Alex’s chicken came out with a bit of char on them, which is just the way I like BBQ’d meats. The rice wasn’t overcooked. Of course, these two things are attributed to Alex’s talents; like I’ve said in the past, he is the reason I haven’t lived solely off of pasta and ramen for the past four years. But the Bok Choy? I did that! I haven’t been prouder of a dish in a long time – and I know. I know. It’s a really easy dish to make. But a girl can have her moments, okay?
One of the things I love about this recipe, though, is that it is applicable to several different kinds of Asian veggies. I made it again last night with Alex’s favorite Asian veggie – Yu Choy - and I under cooked it a bit, but otherwise, still delicious!
I think I’ll chalk this one up to a Greatest Hits contender. Happy Year of the Dragon!
