My family and I enjoy the taste of Shiitake mushrooms married with Bok Choy. Boy Choy, a vegetable originally from China, is a mild tasting vegetable with crunchy stems. A good source of calium, low in sodium and high in vitamins A and C, Bok Choy makes for a nutritional meal. When shopping for this vegetable, avoid buying Bok Choy that has deformed stalks or brown spots on the stems. This shows that the growing conditions for the plant was poor. If you notice that the plant has yellow leaves, know that the Bok Choy is old.

Shiitake mushrooms are dried mushrooms that have been exported from East Asia. Native to China and Japan, this aromatic mushroom is considered a delicacy in many East Asian dishes. During the Ming dynasty in China they were used, not only as a food, but also for medicinal purposes as a remedy for: upper respiratory diseases, poor blood circulation, liver trouble, exhaustion and weakness, and to boost qi (life energy). Rich in flavour, the Shitake mushroom has many nutritional properties and is an excellent source of selenium, iron, dietary fibre and vitamin C.

Ingredients for Recipe:

Bok Choy (the amount depends on how many people you are cooking for); shiitake mushrooms; soy sauce; cooking wine and canola oil for frying.

Method:

When cooking with Shiitake mushrooms, you need to rehydrate them before using. What I do is place a handful in a bowl (depending on how much Bok Choy I am cooking), pour some boiled water over them, and cover. After an hour they will be soft enough to use. Experience has shown me that the longer these dried mushrooms are soaked, the more flavourful they are.

Soak the Bok Choy in some water. Wash each leaf carefully to ensure all the sand has been washed off. Chop, separating the leaves from the stem. I chop the stems and leaves into bite size pieces, ready for easy eating with chopsticks.

Separate the stems from the hoods of the shiitake mushrooms. Discard the stems as they are too hard to eat. Chop the hoods of the mushrooms into strips.

You are now ready to stir fry. Pour some oil into your wok. Once the oil is heated, stir in the mushrooms. Mmm, the aroma is tantalising! Add stems of the Bok Choy, soy sauce, and a tablespoon of cooking wine into the wok. Add the water in which you soaked the mushrooms, discarding the last bit with the sediment from the mushrooms. Stir your vegetables, cooking for a short period of time so that the stems remain crispy. Add the leaves and toss until cooked. Pour into a serving plate.

Quick and easy! The stir fried Bok Choy with Shiitake mushrooms is now ready to eat with rice. Delicious!

Have you tried eating either Bok Choy or Shiitake mushrooms? Do you enjoy stir fried cooking?

© Colline Kook-Chun, 2012