Hello dearest friends! I am back, I am back.
What. A. Holiday. I have so much to share with all of you, and many food inspirations, but for now, recuperating from that major haul home and adjusting to time zones, I’ll give you this very quick and simple recipe that has welcomed me to Copenhagen.
If you can get your hands on fresh shiitake mushrooms, definitely use them. I was lucky enough to find these itty bitty organic ones at the market right next to the baby bok choy, so the dish invented itself.
One tip I will offer is: do not to wash the mushrooms! Mushrooms of any sort are like sponges, and rinsing will cause them to absorb water and taste extremely bland. Boo. If the mushrooms have dirt on them, simply brush them lightly with a kitchen towel or a mushroom brush. If you are using dried shiitake, soak them for at least 30 minutes until soft enough to slice.
If bok choy isn’t your thing, you can substitute any green here: Swiss chard, spinach, kale etc.
Looking forward to sharing my adventures with you in the next post! Much love and happy stir-frying.
Baby Bok Choy and Shiitake Stir-fry
Serves 2
Ingredients:
knob of ghee or coconut oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
300g / 10.5oz. baby bok choy
150g / 5oz. fresh shiitake mushrooms (you could also use dried, 1/3 the amount)
1 small chili, minced (optional)
1 Tbsp. tamari
½ Tbsp. maple syrup
large handful Thai basil or regular basil
cooked grain to serve
sesame seeds to garnish
Directions:
1. Brush dirt off mushrooms; slice if they are large. Rinse bok choy well, shake off excess water and slice into strips. Set aside.
2. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt a knob of ghee or coconut oil. Add minced garlic and chili; cook just until fragrant and beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Add mushrooms, maple syrup and about half the tamari. Cook until the mushrooms have absorbed most of the liquid and are soft. Add the remaining tamari and the bok choy. Stir to coat, remove from heat and continue stirring until the greens have wilted, about 5 minutes. Now fold in the basil and let wilt.
3. Serve immediately over grain of your choice: brown rice, quinoa, millet etc. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and enjoy.
* * * * * *
I got a very lovely surprise in my inbox when I arrived home – My New Roots has been selected as a finalist for Saveur’s Best Food Blogs 2013! The category I am in is “Special Diets” and I am honoured to be in the company of five other incredible nominees. But here is where I shamelessly ask you to vote for me. You can do that here. Voting closes next Friday, April 19. Thank you SO MUCH for your support.
Highly recommend! Added some extra garlic and crushed ginger but otherwise followed as shown. It was delicious!
Thank you for this recipe! Was amazing! (:
Love this! All of my favorite things! I am obsessed with mushrooms so this recipe is right up my alley??.
Thankfully, living around Asia affords me the chance of obtaining both bok choy and shiitake whenever I want. However, as has already been mentioned, I think from the photos this looks a bit spinachy to be bok choy. I would say bok choy would be a little soft for this recipe therefore I’m waiting until I can source something a bit firmer. It looks great though!
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For sure agree with your words. Very good Blog Bing sent me to.
I like ridges on my cranberry sauce
Good idea!! 😀
Dear Sarah,
I’ve actually written a comment about this dish already a few months back after first making it. I have to tell you now though: I CANNOT stop making this!!!!! It’s soooo easy and totally addictive! Unfortunately, I’ve recently moved from Toronto to Edmonton and fresh ingredients aren’t as easy to come by (and much more expensive!) but it’s still worth the trouble.
Yet another hit!! We made ours tonight, with green chard instead of bok choy, and served with quinoa. Totally satisfied our mushroom craving! Thanks again! 🙂
I made this with double veggies so even with extra tamari and ginger and some Mirin the bok choy was a little bland so I made a sauce with tahini, a little oj and some Thai basil and green onion in a magic bullet and mixed everything together with quinoa cooked in veggie broth for a very satisfying couple of meals.
I can’t wait to see and hear about your adventures! In the mean time – i’ve been all about mushrooms lately and you are right to say not to wash them – it just feels so weird not to wash something when we are always told how important it is to wash or produce! I do manage to get myself to just brush any dirt off and I always buy organic mushrooms.
i just made this for lunch, and it was *delish* and so simple. i got bok choy and basil in my CSA box this morning, ran out for a jalapeno and shitakes, and stir-fried some asian noodles in sesame oil for the grain. so, so flavorful and with great textures. i think, though, that next time i might add extra shoyu with some miso mixed in, just for extra kick.
I love this dish because my mum always cook it for me. The vegetables go very well with the mushrooms. You can add abalone sauce to this dish to make it even better. 🙂
Hi there! Welcome back. I really needed to let you know that the “Life Changing Loaf of Bread” has… hmmm.. well let’s just cut to the chase… CHANGED MY LIFE!!! I have had three thus far (Thank you Hubby for attacking this with such gusto – he’s close to having the recipe memorised!) It was the perfect food to begin eating after a 60 day juice/smoothie fast (which by the way cured me of all sorts of ailments – even one’s that doctors said were mine for life – yay for healthy food!!) and I am officially hooked. I have served it with a cashew basil pesto and cumin roasted sweet potato for family and they are now asking for the recipe. Thank you so so sooooo much for sharing, caring and living your passion. You’re a goodness warrior and you rock!
What a beautiful looking dish.
Great blog and keen to follow
Congratulation, you really deserve it! You have a beautiful blog.
Hi Sarah!
As always, thank you for your wonderful recipes! Your blog inspires my family cooking. I would like ask you a tip. I have just picked up loads of nettles. I’m thinking of a soup (like the swedish do) … Do you have another suggestions? Thanks. Eugenia
Welcome back. I haven’t tried eating baby bok choy but I have tried Chinese cabbage before. Perhaps I could substitute it with spinach or kale if it is not available in the local grocery. I did not know that mushroom should not be washed. I am using the canned mushrooms before and I do not have problem with washing it. Thanks for the nice recipe.
Soooooo good! Really, so simple and so wonderfully tasty! Thank you Sarah for sharing your gift with us!
This recipe was great! Simple, tasty, fast, nutritious, what more can one ask for?!
This is my kind of meal!
This recipe looks great Sarah. I will try it our this weekend if i can find fresh ingredients! And congrats on the best food blog nomination. You definately get my vote 🙂
Oh my, you did it again. This dish looks beautiful and the list of ingredients gets me hungry again even though I just had dinner.
Alan and I loved this!
Ah, this explain why my shiitake mushroom tasted weird.. 😀
this reminds me of a recipe my friend recently shared with me – slice shiitake mushrooms really thin, toss them with walnut oil, salt & pepper, then roast them in the oven till crisp. it’s like chips but better 🙂
Bok Choy is such a treat! Beautiful and delicious recipe!
Where do you get mushrooms likes that?
I think that would make my food even more interesting.
Welcome back!
Hello sarah!
I am sorry because this comment doesn’t have nothing to do with this article but I wanted to ask you what do you think about kefir? and if you have any information about it? I am starting to eat cow kefir, and not feel bad but I am not really conviced it is a good thing, because I usually intend not to consum cow products. I have been reading many things but there are many differents informations about it…
Thank you very much if you can tell me a little more about it!
And above all thank you for the wonderfull recipes you offer to us and sharing your love for food! which is contagious!!!
I see am not the only one who did not know about washing mushrooms. Will be putting in my vote for you right now and then it’s off to find fresh shiitake mushrooms.
You so deserve it my dear! I have voted for you last night:-))
this dish looks sooo fresh+yummy…need to find the baby bok choy!
thanks a MILLION (for this and the previous recipes)
Just made this with Jade Pearl Rice and Miso Maple Sriracha Glazed Salmon. It was wonderful. What a lovely combination of flavors in this simple dish. Your recipes are always the best. Thank you!
Welcome home Sarah! Of course I’ve cast my vote on you. I absolutely adore your blog & am cheering for YOU!
Seriously stunners! I want to bok on that choy.
This looks delicious, can’t wait to try it out. Congrats on the nomination, you deserve it. Your blog is stunning and we’re lucky you share it with us!
Smiles from Vancouver : )
Thanks for yet another delish-sounding recipe. That said, I wish people, especially food bloggers, would stop perpetuating this mushroom washing myth! It’s been disproven many times. Wash away, people, wash away!
You have my vote, I just love your blog it is simply inspirational on so many levels xx
Such a beautiful great recipe, thanks for sharing it. I would never think of adding a little bit of maple syrup to a dish like this, I’m definitely going to try it.
Hi Sarah…did you notice that in the photo of your hand holding the fresh shiitake mushrooms, your fingers are in the same shape/position as the mushrooms? 🙂
I just came back from the South coast of Ireland and there was this lady growing her own mushrooms…To.Die.For. I am forever now a mushroom fan! Thanks for another recipe to add to the growing collection.
I can’t wait to hear about the culinary inspirations that you encountered in Hawaii!
So happy for you Sarah and amazing recipe as always!
Hey Friends!
I go to Torvehallerne for my veggies quite often. That is where I found both the organic, mini shiitakes and the bok choy. It’s a wonderful place to visit and shop for fresh produce, especially in the summer.
xo, Sarah B
Welcome back!
I need to know: Which market do you got o in Cph?
Already voted for you last night! 🙂
Congrats! And that bok choy looks like a chard!
Huge congrats on your nomination Sarah! All the best love xx
Where in Copenhagen did you find fresh shiitake mushrooms and bok choy? 🙂
Looks amazing!
Are you sure it is bok choy and not swiss chard?
I bought some swiss chard a week back and for the first time thought about how close the chard is to bok choy……
Thanks so much for the tip about not washing mushrooms, I had no idea and actually it makes a lot of sense (silly me!). I love this kind of dish and I happen to have shiitake in my fridge, ready to be used –this way! Lovely lovely recipe.
Welcome back Sarah! I hope you can hold on to that holiday feeling for as long as possible. Off to vote for MNR now – good luck!!
Welcome back! This look amazing! And I think I saw this mushrooms in a store 🙂