Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Chinese Vegetables with Garlic Sauce Done in 5 minutes




Back from the holidays, we all want to stick to our New Year's resolutions.  Beforehand, ask yourselves this : Are the New Year's resolutions truly my own, or are they society's ?  If they're you're own, you'll stick to them.  If they're society's you'll give up on them.   If you are determined to eat healthier this year for your own well-being, then there's a good chance that you'll abide by your decision throughout the year and even farther.


This very simple dish of Asian greens, which could either be Chinese cabbage or Chinese broccoli, can be done in a cinch.  It's so simple, that anyone can do it blind-folded.  No, seriously, it's a great side dish or vegetarian meal that can be prepared in minutes during a busy work week.


The same can be done with Spinach, Kale, Rapini, green beans or North American or European broccoli.




Preparation time : 2 minutes, Cooking time : 3 minutes


Recipe "au pif":
Your choice of Asian greens (Chinese broccoliChinese cabbage...etc.)
1 tsp finely minced garlic
1 tbsp vegetable oil 
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp water
1/2 tsp ground white peppercorn (found in most asian grocery stores) 
3 cups boiling water.
*
Preparing garlic oil:
Lightly brown garlic in hot pan (make sure you don't overcook or burn the garlic as it'll taste bitter) for about 30 seconds.

Preparing the veggies:
Boil water in large sized saucepan. Add 1-2 drops of vegetable oil (this will keep the veggies vibrant in colour).

Blanch the greens in the boiling water for about 2 minutes. Drain and discard water and put greens aside on a serving platter. Blanching is an important step which will give the greens a great crunch and not wilted.

In a hot wok, add in 1 tbsp garlic oil, oyster sauce, white peppercorn and give it a stir for 30 seconds. Add in 1 tbsp water and stir for another 30 seconds. Pour the sauce over the greens and serve.


Serves 2 as a main course meal, or 4 as a side dish.


Share and enjoy.

2 comments:

  1. Hi! I know this is an old post, but I just found it. My vege-phobic kids will only eat broccoli when we buy 'garlic veggies' from our favourite Chinese takeaway. I just tried your recipe tonight, and the kids are telling me it's better than the takeaway, and they are ignoring the other stuff on their plates and calling for 'MORE BROCCOLI!!'. Thank you so much! I can finally get something green into my kids, thanks to this recipe!

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    1. Wow! That's the best feedback I've received so far! I'm so glad this recipe got your kids wanting to eat more greens :-)
      Thanks so much for the kind words. I'm just glad this posting came into good use!

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