Bok choy for less than a buck!
We were wandering around in Chinatown last weekend looking for some ceramic serving plates with unusual patterns. I love entertaining at home but am currently a bit dissatisfied with my dinnerware. A friend mentioned that the ceramic shops in Chinatown would be the perfect place for me to shop.
The problem is that she never told me where exactly these shops are located. I thought it would be as simple as asking around but little did I realize that no one - I mean NO ONE - in Chinatown speaks English! That adds a lovely authenticity to the place but is not exactly fun when you're trying to get directions! With one hand pinching my nose (you can't escape the deadly smell of raw seafood in Chinatown), I went from shop to shop trying to find a place that sold kitchen stuff. Two hours and many broken-English conversations later, still no luck. Very frustrating. Harsha kept reminding me that we should have just gone to Crate & Barrel which didn't exactly make me feel better.
The upside of it all was that I came across a middle-aged Chinese lady who was selling all kinds of green vegetables at throw away prices. She kept smiling at me and I couldn't resist buying something from her. I scanned her swath of greens including spring onions, spinach, caulifower and cabbage, and settled on the bok choy. They looked so ready for a nice soy and chili bath. I bought a whole pound for, hold your breath, 60 cents.
I like my bok choy as a side with Thai curry and rice. I get a wok heated till it's really hot, throw in a few drops of sesame oil. I give it a few twirls and then add a little bit of freshly chopped garlic and ginger and shake it up a bit. Then I add four liquids in no particular proportions, just enough to create a tasty and very spicy sauce for the bok choy to be lightly coated in - soy sauce, rice vinegar, rice vinegar and chili garlic sauce. Finally, I add the washed and cleaned bok choy. Sautee for a few minutes and I'm done:
I love the slight sweetness and crunchiness of the bok choy with the spice explosion from the soy and chili.
Yum!
posted by lulu at 6:46 PM
2 Comments:
lulu,the buck choy looks very tempting.and hot!.you seem to have put tons of chilli powder.
you must have heard from me about the kolkata china town.it is unbelievable.one of these days,i will do a blog on that.
and when you mention bucks you must be very sensitive as it is the raging topic nowadays here.it is not the green buck.only the colour is different.i am referring to the black buck and its slaughter by the nawab of pataudi.
and your title for this posting has inspired me to post my next subject on similar lines!
I like to buy the $2.50 / lb cherries at the fruit cart on centre and canal (outside the jmz platform) and make pies from them. The woman that works there is very friendly.
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