Seared Pak Choi with Soy Sauce
A simple pak choi recipe cooked quickly with soy sauce so the stems stay crisp and the leaves turn tender. A fast vegan side dish ready in minutes.
Servings: 2 people
Calories: 71kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
- 4-5 leaves pak choi (also known as bok choy)
- Pinch of sugar
- 1 teaspoon mirin
- 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
- Red chili, sliced (optional for garnish)
Instructions
- Wash the pak choi thoroughly, paying close attention to the base of the stems where grit can collect. Shake off excess water so it doesn’t steam in the pan.
- Heat the sesame oil in a wok or wide frying pan over high heat. The pan should be hot before the pak choi goes in.
- Lay the pak choi into the pan in a single layer. It should sizzle immediately. Avoid overcrowding. Cook in batches if needed.
- Drizzle in the soy sauce and mirin, then sprinkle over the sugar. The heat will quickly coat the stems and leaves with flavor.
- Flip the pak choi and scatter over the sesame seeds. Cook briefly until the stems are tender-crisp and the leaves have softened.
- Serve hot straight from the pan, with sliced chili on top if you like.
Notes
- Use a wide pan and keep the heat high so the pak choi sears instead of steaming.
- If the pan looks crowded, cook the pak choi in batches to keep the stems crisp.
- Serve with ramen noodles or other vegan Japanese rice dishes.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 serve | Calories: 71kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 0.4g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 191mg | Potassium: 14mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 89IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 8mg | Iron: 0.2mg
