Bok Choy and a Cooler, Wetter Spring

Bok Choy and a Cooler, Wetter Spring

Bok Choy (a quick, Asian cabbage or brassica that prefers stable cool temperatures and    a significant amount of rain) is not really suited for our climate.  It is one of the “wish list” vegetables that always gets tossed out during our winter planning sessions as completely illogical in our climate, marked by instability, long periods without rain, and in recent years an almost complete absence of those wonderful growing temperatures called the 60s (you may remember them, if you have lived here for many years!).  This winter, though, we were enticed by an organic, heirloom variety “Prize Choy” that some organic farmers in Virginia have grown as baby bok choy in the spring and fall.  We liked that it was darker green (higher vitamin content), had some purple accents, and could be harvested without significant losses in a climate one zone north.  We decided we would try it, on a limited basis.  Well, we lucked out.  March and April were significantly cooler than past seasons (sometimes more than 40 degrees), and we have had plenty of steady rain.  Really, to be honest, although the cooler weather has put us behind other seasons (by about 2 weeks), it has been the IDEAL spring for growing cool-weather, spring crops.  It is the first spring we have been here that we have not had losses (sometimes complete losses) of crops due to hot, dry weather (peas, spinach, carrots, radishes, cold-weather lettuces, early broccoli, and arugula being the typical victims). And, our crops are also much more on-schedule in relation to each other and in terms of expected days to maturity than they have ever been.  The farm really looks GREAT!  Now, we just have to keep the grass and weeds under control!  Spring growth is never really limited to what you choose.  If the bok choy grows, well, so does everything else!  Just to give you an idea of how delicate bok choy is, the one day that it hit 85 this spring, we lost about 15 plants to bolting (the process of going to seed which can be triggered by day lengthening or warming).  In any of the previous springs here, we would have probably lost all of our bok choy by mid-March.  The reason that it has flea beetle holes is directly related.  Our best defense against flea beetles is row cover.  However, even the thinnest row cover will heat up the soil and plants underneath it, as much as 5 degrees on a sunny day.  Here, those 5 degrees can mean the difference between bok choy that survives (although with holes) and bok choy that bolts.  We opted for the holes.

So what do you do with bok choy?  It is a very quick cooking Asian cabbage.  It can be eaten raw, lightly steamed, sauteed, or stir-fried or integrated into a huge variety of dishes from miso soup to egg rolls or wontons to steam buns to curries.  Below are a couple of recipes to try. 

Bok Choy Steam Buns (from Baker Creek Seeds)

Steam Bun dough:

3 c. flour

1 c. milk, your choice, room temp

1/2 c. warm water 

1 T. agave or sugar

2 1/4 t. active yeast

1/4 t. salt

Mix yeast, agave, and water.  Let sit 10 minutes.  Add dry ingredients.  Knead 5 minutes until dough is no longer sticky.  Let rise in an oiled bowl, cover with damp cloth, in warm place for 45 min.  

Steam bun filling: (Can be used for wontons or egg rolls or eaten on its own with brown rice)

6 cloves garlic, minced

6 c. mushrooms

2 carrots, grated

2-3 baby bok choy 

2 small shallots or scallions or diced onion

3 T. oil, your choice

1-2 T. sweet chili sauce or use the spicy kind and add a dash of agave to it

1 T. soy sauce

Thai basil or cilantro to garnish

Saute veggies in oil.  Add sauces.  Garnish with herbs.

Divide dough into 16 balls.  Flatten.  Add 2 T. filling to each one.  The thinner the dough, the more filling you can put it (and the better the result in my opinion).  Pleat circumference of dough and twist close.  Add to steamer lined with parchment paper, and steam in batches for 10 minutes.

Sweet Potato, Bok Choy Curry (from elspetheatsyumyum.blogspot.com, Deborah Madison has a very similar recipe as well)

Serve with rice, any other grain, or a good Indian bread.

“All you need to do for the sauce is warm a can (or two if you like a lot of sauce) of coconut milk with a few teaspoons of curry paste. Adding a ton of finely chopped cilantro and a thinly sliced Thai red chili or jalapeno to the sauce will make it more flavorful and pretty, but you don't really need that. While you warm the sauce, you can prepare the veggies you want to use. I used sweet potatoes, baby bok choy, sauteed shallots or garlic and onions, and mushrooms. Steam or saute the vegetables you want to use.  Do not overcook them because you will be adding them to the sauce to cook for another 5 minutes or so. 

For added protein, I used tofu. You do not need to use a lot of oil with the tofu. A couple of teaspoons is plenty if you have a nice non-stick griddle. Slice your tofu into 1" cubes, and use some paper towels to blot out a little of that water. Spread the cubes so that they are flat on your pre-heated griddle. Then flip after about five minutes or when the bottoms are a light golden brown. Repeat on the other sides so that you have nice crispy cubes.

When all of your veggies and tofu are done you can add them to the sauce. Coat and cook for 5 minutes. Serve over rice and you have a hearty and healthy meal!”