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Braised Baby Bok Choy with Celery and Ginger

Recipe Provided by Kelly Clark, Market Staff and Volunteer

What is Baby Bok Choy and what do I do with it?
Baby bok choy comes from a variety of Chinese cabbage that does not form heads; instead they have smooth, dark green leaf blades forming a cluster reminiscent of mustard or celery, hence the various names you may see; bok shoi, pak choi, pak choy, taisai, celery mustard or Chinese mustard. Baby bok choy has spoon shaped leaves with flat stems. It may be a dwarf variety of this plant or just small, immature bok. Look for firm stalks and leaves that are not yellowing or wilted.

In the recipe that follows, I used little heads of baby bok choy that were about 3-4 inches long, and had not formed much of a stalk yet. Any of the baby bok choy that I’ve seen in our Market will work.

Ingredients

8 clusters baby bok choy,* thoroughly washed and leaving the cluster intact**
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 Tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and shaved with a vegetable peeler
1/2 cup celery, very thinly sliced on the diagonal
1/2 cup onion,* thinly sliced
2 cups vegetable stock
1 Tablespoon soy sauce

Procedure:
In a pan large enough to hold the bok choy in one layer, heat the olive oil over medium. Add the celery and onion and cook for several minutes. Add the ginger and cook until the ginger becomes fragrant. Add the vegetable stock, bring to a boil then simmer for 5 minutes. Add the baby bok choy clusters in a single layer. Simmer over medium low heat for 5 minutes, and then turn the clusters over. Simmer for another 5 minutes, and then turn again. Simmer for another 5 minutes, turn and sprinkle soy sauce over the bok choy. Serve hot.

*Ingredients Available at Market. Our Saturday Market runs from 9am-Noon at the Town Commons next to Carrboro Town Hall. Starting March 14th, our hours change to 7am-Noon.