Quick ideas
Stir-fried Chinese cabbage
This recipe is a great side dish with a good balance of sweet, sharp, salty, and fiery and it shows the principle of how to best cook it and how it might be added into other dishes – beginning with the thicker stalks and adding the faster cooking leaves at the very end. You’ll always want a little crunch left in the stalks, but a little head start really helps.
Cook's notes
The sugar is optional as some soy and tamari sauces can be sweet enough and we are aware that some people prefer to avoid added sugars.
Ingredients
- 1 Chinese cabbage
- 2 dried chillies, deseeded and roughly crumbled
- 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp soy or tamari sauce
- ½ tbsp rice vinegar
- ½ tsp brown sugar – optional
- plain oil – e.g., vegetable or sunflower
- salt to taste
Method
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Step 1
Roughly shred the cabbage, divide it into two piles, one with the part of thicker stalk at the bottom and one with more of the tender leaf from the top. As the core of the cabbage can be tightly packed, it is often easier to wash after it has been sliced; try and dry it well so it doesn’t spit too much in the pan.
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Step 2
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok or large frying pan over a high heat. Add the chillies and garlic and cook for 30 seconds or so until the garlic starts to lightly colour and smell fragrant.
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Step 3
Add the stalk parts of the cabbage and stir-fry for a couple of minutes before adding the tender leaves. Cook for a minute or so until starting to wilt and then add the soy, vinegar, and sugar (if using). Cook for a final 30 second until tender. Taste and tweak with more salt f you think it needs it. Serve immediately.