Bok choy is a Chinese vegetable with dark green leaves, and it is a terrific leafy green to add to your favorite stir-fry recipes or enjoy as a side dish. Blanching is a great way to help retain its texture and color while removing the leaves’ bitterness. Here’s how to blanch bok choy for the best results.
What is blanching?
Blanching is a cooking technique used to quickly cook vegetables, remove their bitterness, and to stop the enzymatic action that can lead to a loss of flavor. It also helps retain the vibrant color of the vegetables. Blanching is commonly used in various culinary applications, including preparing vegetables for freezing, removing skins from fruits or vegetables and pre-cooking — or blanching — ingredients for further cooking.
Blanching bok choy
To blanch bok choy, follow these steps.
Step 1: Prepare the bok choy for blanching
Rinse the bok choy under cold running water to remove dirt or debris. Trim the root end of the white stems, especially the tough ends of the stalks, and separate the stalks and leaves if desired. You can use a sharp knife or snap off the ends with your hands. If the bok choy stalks are large, you can cut them into smaller, bite-sized pieces. Discard any discolored or wilted stems.
Step 2: Boil water
Fill a large pot of water and bring it to a rolling boil. The pot should be big enough to accommodate the bok choy without overcrowding.
Step 3: Salt the water
Add a pinch of salt, if desired, to the blanching water. This can enhance the flavor of the bok choy and help maintain the bright green leaves.
Step 4: Blanch the raw bok choy
Carefully add the bok choy stalks to the boiling water. Let them cook for about 1-2 minutes over medium-high heat or until they become slightly tender but retain some crispness. Add the bok choy leaves and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute until they wilt slightly.
Step 5: Ice water bath
Transfer the blanched bok choy from the boiling water to a bowl or sink filled with ice water using a slotted spoon or tongs. This helps cool down the bok choy quickly and stops the cooking process while also locking in the color
Step 6: Cool and drain
Allow the blanched bok choy to cool in the ice water for a few minutes. Once cooled, remove the bok choy from the ice water and drain any excess water.
Blanched bok choy adds a refreshing and nutritious element to your meals. Adjust the blanching time based on the size and thickness of your bok choy and your preferred level of doneness.
Different ways to cook blanched bok choy
You can use blanched bok choy in various dishes, such as stir-fries, soups, salads or as a side vegetable. It retains its vibrant green color, crispness and nutritional value through blanching.
Here are some ideas on how to use your blanched bok choy:
- Stir-fried bok choy: After blanching the fresh bok choy briefly, you can stir-fry it with garlic cloves, fresh ginger and soy sauce in a large skillet. This simple dish allows the flavor of the bok choy to shine.
- Bok choy soup: You can add blanched bok choy to soups, such as a clear vegetable soup or a Chinese-style chicken broth. The tender bok choy leaves and stalks provide a refreshing and nutritious addition to the soup.
- Bok choy salad: You can chill the blanched bok choy and then use it in a refreshing salad. Combine it with other vegetables like carrots, cucumber and radishes, and dress it with a sesame ginger dressing or a tangy soy-based vinaigrette.
- Bok choy dumplings: Blanched bok choy can be finely chopped into smaller pieces and mixed with ground meat or tofu to create a flavorful filling for dumplings. Wrap the filling in dumpling wrappers and steam, boil or pan-fry them for a delicious and healthy appetizer.
- Bok choy noodles: You can pair blanched bok choy with noodles in dishes like stir-fried noodles or noodle soups. Add the blanched bok choy towards the end of cooking, which is a great addition to retain its color and crunchy texture.
- Bok choy and mushroom stir-fry: Combine blanched bok choy with sauteed shiitake mushrooms for a delicious vegetarian stir-fry. Season it with soy sauce, oyster sauce, or other preferred sauce for added flavor.
Another delicious way to use bok choy is by making a rice bowl with a rice cooker. A bok choy rice bowl made in a rice cooker is a simple, flavorful and healthy one-pot meal.
Start by rinsing your rice, then add it to the rice cooker with water or broth for extra flavor. Stir in soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and ginger before layering chopped bok choy and optional vegetables like carrots or dried shrimp on top. As the rice cooks, the vegetables steam perfectly, infusing the dish with natural flavors. Once done, fluff the rice and stir in the tender bok choy, and top it with sesame seeds, green onions or your favorite protein for a satisfying meal.
Storing blanched bok choy
You can store bok choy in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Blanched bok choy can also be frozen in a freezer-safe container for up to three months.
To freeze blanched bok choy before adding it to your recipes, remove it from the ice water and drain any excess moisture. Gently pat it dry with a clean kitchen towel or paper towel. Divide the blanched bok choy into approximate portions based on your recipes. This will make it easier to grab the desired amount without thawing the entire batch.
Place the portioned bok choy into freezer bags like freezer-safe zipper-topped bags. Don’t forget to label the bags; this helps track how long the blanched bok choy has been frozen.
Keep the freezer bags flat in the freezer until frozen solid to prevent them from sticking together. When you’re ready to use the blanched bok choy, remove a desired portion from the freezer and thaw it in the refrigerator overnight, or thaw it with the defrost setting on your microwave.
Note: Blanching helps preserve the color and texture of bok choy, but it may still experience slight changes in texture after freezing. For the best quality, it is best to use blanched bok choy within a few months.
Final thoughts
Blanching bok choy is an easy way to help retain its texture and color while removing the bitterness of the leaves. Now that you know how to blanch bok choy, you can easily blanch, store it, and turn it into delicious dishes.
Yuan is a U.S.-based writer, world traveler, web developer and photographer behind the food blog Sassy Chopsticks. She loves to share various flavorful, authentic Chinese food and Asian-inspired recipes for everyday cooking.
This article originally appeared on Sassy Chopsticks.