OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2019 • COOK’S COUNTRY 9SAUTÉED BABY BOK CHOY WITH
SESAME OIL AND GARLIC Serves 4
Bok choy can sometimes be sandy near
the inner base of the head. Look for this
sand when you’re separating the stalks
and make sure to remove it during
rinsing. Look for heads of bok choy that
weigh 4 to 6 ounces each.1½ pounds baby bok choy
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ teaspoon red pepper fl akes
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
½ teaspoon table salt- Cut dark green leaves from bok
choy stalks. Chop leaves coarse. Place
leaves in large bowl and cover with
water; swish around to remove sand.
Remove leaves from water, transfer to
salad spinner, and spin dry; transfer
leaves to clean bowl and set aside. - Cut off bottom ¼ inch of bok choy
base and discard. Pull bok choy stalks
downward to snap off at base until you
reach core; discard core. Repeat wash-
ing and spinning with stalks. Pat stalks
dry with paper towels if still wet. - Combine sesame oil, garlic, and
red pepper fl akes in small bowl. Heat
vegetable oil in 12-inch nonstick
skillet over medium-high heat until
just smoking. Add stalks, sprinkle
with salt, and cook, without stirring,
until beginning to brown on bottom,
about 5 minutes. Stir and continue to
cook until stalks are just tender, about
1 minute longer.- Add leaves and sesame oil mixture
and cook, turning constantly with
tongs, until leaves are wilted, about
1 minute. Remove skillet from heat
and season bok choy with salt to taste.
Transfer to platter and serve.
SAUTÉED BABY BOK CHOY WITH
HONEY AND ORANGE
Substitute 1 thinly sliced scallion,
2 teaspoons honey, and 2 teaspoons
grated orange zest for sesame oil,
garlic, and pepper fl akes.Sautéed Baby Bok Choy
How do you get the
most fl avor out of
this quick-cooking
vegetable? Brown it.
by Natalie EstradaBOK CHOY, A member of the cab-
bage family, has been cultivated in Asia
for thousands of years. Supermarkets
sell both large heads of mature bok
choy, which can measure over a foot
long, and smaller heads of baby bok
choy, which are more tender, milder
in fl avor, and typically measure about
5 inches long. I wanted to create
a simple weeknight recipe for the
quicker-cooking baby variety.
Many recipes for this vegetable fail
because the tender leaves cook much
faster than the crisp white stalks. So
instead of trying to cook the bok choy
whole or halved, I began by removing
the leaves from the spoon-shaped stalks
before submerging them in water to
clean them. Next, I snapped the stalks
off the bases and thoroughly washed
those, too (bok choy can be very sandy).
After drying the stalks and leaves,
I heated some vegetable oil until it was
almost smoking and then added the
bok choy stalks to the pan. Since I was
looking to add fl avorful browning to
this mild vegetable, I had to be patient
and not stir for about 5 minutes.
Once the stalks were lightly browned,
I added the quick-cooking leaves along
with some nutty sesame oil, garlic, and
red pepper fl akes. Just 1 minute later,
the bright, light, fl avorful dish was
done. Easy, simple, and ready in a fl ash.SLOW-ROASTED SALMON WITH
CHIVES AND LEMON Serves 6
You can substitute granulated sugar
for the brown sugar, if desired. If a
2½-pound salmon fi llet is unavail-
able, you can use six 6- to 8-ounce
skinless salmon fi llets instead. In
step 1, sprinkle both sides of the
fi llets evenly with the sugar mixture
and arrange them side by side in the
baking dish so they are touching.
The cooking time remains the same.
We prefer farm-raised salmon here;
if using wild salmon, reduce the
cooking time to 45 to 50 minutes, or
until the salmon registers 120 de-
grees. If you’re using table salt, use
¾ teaspoon (½ teaspoon in step 1
and ¼ teaspoon in step 3).
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
1½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
½ teaspoon pepper
1 (2½-pound) skinless center-cut
salmon fi llet, about 1½ inches
thick
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons sliced fresh chives
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
plus 1½ tablespoons juice
- Adjust oven rack to middle posi-
tion and heat oven to 250 degrees.
Combine sugar, 1 teaspoon salt,
and pepper in small bowl. Sprinkle
salmon all over with sugar mixture. - Place salmon, fl esh side up, in
13 by 9-inch baking dish. Roast
until center is still translucent
when checked with tip of paring
knife and registers 125 degrees (for
medium-rare), 55 to 60 minutes. - Meanwhile, combine oil, chives,
lemon zest and juice, and remaining
½ teaspoon salt in bowl. - Remove dish from oven and im-
mediately pour oil mixture evenly
over salmon. Let rest for 5 minutes.
Using spatula and spoon, portion
salmon and sauce onto serving plat-
ter. Stir together any juices left in
dish and spoon over salmon. Serve.
SLOW-ROASTED SALMON
WITH DILL AND GARLIC
Substitute 1 teaspoon dry mustard
for pepper. Add 1 teaspoon granulat-
ed garlic to sugar mixture. Substitute
chopped fresh dill for chives.
SLOW-ROASTED SALMON
WITH PARSLEY AND CAYENNE
Substitute cayenne pepper for
pepper and chopped fresh parsley
for chives.
Buy the Little Guys
The stalks of large bok choy heads won’t
cook through in the amount of time called
for here. Be sure to use small heads of
baby bok choy (about 5 inches long).5 inches- Snap stalks
from core
2. Wash sand
from stalks
3. Spin
stalks dry
Cleaning 1, 2, 3...