Carrots & Bok Choy

Anyone who knows me knows that I have a mild (OK, major) obsession with Mekong, Richmond's finest Vietnamese restaurant.  I fell into a deep, no-going-back love with Mekong a handful of years ago (around 2004) when a friend from graduate school took me there for dinner.  I ordered tofu with broccoli in a brown garlic sauce and was hooked for life.  Behind their impressive bar adorned with "beers of the world" and shiny bottles of liquor, they also fixed me a basil mojito.  This basil mojito was a welcomed twist on the traditional mint mojito.  Fresh, fast, friendly, flavorful - those words sum up Mekong, to me. 

The recipe I am writing about today is a Chinese recipe, but it reminds me of my beloved Mekong.  The masterful culinary spirit behind the recipe and behind one of my favorite new cookbooks is Ching-He Huang.  Within the pages of her cookbook, "Ching's Everyday Easy Chinese", she shares endearing stories and colorful recipes.  With an English accent from living in England as a child, her words twinkle and chime, and you just love her instantly. 

Enjoy this recipe - I have made it multiple times in the last couple of months.  It is just that simple and that good!!

Carrots & Bok Choy
Source:  adapted from Ching-He Huang's Bok Choy with Carrot and Garlic from "Ching's Everyday Easy Chinese"

Ingredients:
1 T. peanut oil (I reduced to a little less than 1 T. due to my additions below)
1 clove of garlic, crushed and finely chopped (I used 2)
1 carrot, thinly sliced on the diagonal (I used 2 or 3 medium carrots because we wanted leftovers!)
7 oz. baby bok choy, leaves separated and roughly sliced (I used about 12 oz. - again, for leftovers)
2 pinches coarse sea salt
*my additions: I added 2 or 3 tiny drops of sesame oil, a turn of cracked black pepper, and about 1 T. light soy sauce.  The sesame oil added a richness to the dish, and the soy sauce married beautifully with the veggies.

The Process:
Heat a wok or a skillet with high sides over high heat until it starts to smoke a bit, and then add the peanut oil and garlic.  Cook for a few seconds only (no one wants burned garlic!)  Add the carrot slices and stir-fry for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add the bok choy leaves, and toss with the carrots.  Add a small dash of water and cook for 1 minute.  If desired, add the additions of sesame oil and soy sauce.  Sprinkle with sea salt and serve immediately.  How fast was that?

We served our Carrots & Bok Choy with a delightful baked Hoisin Chicken (bake 2 chicken breasts in a dish in the oven for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees within a sultry, sexy bath of approx. 1/2 cup hoisin sauce, a modest drizzle of regular olive oil, S & P, and 1 clove of freshly chopped garlic). 

Bon Appetit!