PORK STIR-FRY WITH BABY BOK CHOY & SHIITAKI MUSHROOMS
This quick to prepare Bok Choy stir-fry recipe only takes 15 minutes and produces a wonderful vegan-friendly side dish. Add meat and additional aromatics to the dish and turn this one-dish meal into a quick entree in no time. Add this flavorful stir-fry veggie recipe to your Asian menu on a ketogenic diet.
In this recipe, I cook with “miniature” often called “Baby Bok Choy”. This miniature Chinese cabbage has tender stalks without the tough fibers of full-size Bok Choy and its bright green leaves have a sweet, clean flavor balanced by a hint of peppery, mustardy bitterness (taste is similar to Swiss Chard or Spinach. This vegetable is fast-cooking, versatile, and available year-round at most grocery stores and Asian markets.
Bok Choy can also be steamed, boiled, stir-fried or microwaved until just wilted, 2-3 minutes. In many of my recipes, I also chop this vegetable in place of other greens for salads. In many of my braised meat dishes, I braise Bok Choy leaves by adding to the flavorful liquid at the end of roasting meat– I sautee the chopped leaves in the simmering pan broth, sauce or gravy produced. This produces a “silky and tender” texture and adds a wonderful flavor to the leaves without burning them.
To add aromatics like minced garlic, ginger, or chili paste, add grape seed oil to the pan first and cook the aromatics, stirring constantly, until they are fragrant, about one minute (don’t overcook or burn them). Add the broth and Bok Choy. Drizzle the veggies with sesame oil.
Bok Choy belongs to the leafy vegetable Pak choi family of Chinese brassicas. Bok Choy is also called Chinese White Cabbage, Chinese Chard, Chinese Mustard Cabbage, Pak Choi. Bok Choy has white or green, thick, crunchy stems with light to dark green wide leaves. Size can vary from 4-12 inches tall. All parts, stems and leaves, are eaten.
Store Bok Choy in a refrigerator crisper bin (32 to 36 degrees Fahrenheit). Store in a paper or perforated plastic bag. (TIP: for any green leafy veggie, I wrap a slightly moist paper towel around the whole vegetable to keep it crisp) Do not wash until you are ready to use. Use within 3-4 days.
Bok Choy is an excellent source of vitamin C, provides dietary fiber, iron, calcium and folate, a good source of beta carotene (your body turns this into vitamin A).
Add ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine or cooking sherry and brown sugar or alternative sweetener and wisk.
Pork tenderloin (1/2 pound) trim fat and slice thinly.
Add sliced pork to marinade and refrigerate overnight for best flavor and to tenderize the meat.
Baby Bok Choy
Separate Bok Choy stems and wash, pat dry before stir frying.
If using dried, dehydrated Shiitake mushrooms, soak overnight. Rinse several times and change water. If using fresh mushrooms, rinse and pat dry.
Remove mushroom stem and slice thinly for stir-fry.
Preheat wok (very hot), add grapeseed oil to cover entire surface of pan. Heat oil until you see slight smoking.
Add garlic and ginger and caramelize (2 minutes). Remove and add after stir-frying meat.
Stir-fry pork with a continuous stirring, scooping, tossing motion to ensure even cooking. Stir-fry pork until the outside surface is browned and the center is pink and not cooked through. Don’t overcook! Remove from Wok.
Heat wok and add grapeseed oil. Stir-fry Bok Choy stems (2 minutes until stems become tender). Add mushrooms and stir-fry another 2 minutes. Add previously stir-fried garlic and ginger and continue to stir-fry.
Reduce heat to medium heat. Add saved marinade liquid to pan and cook 3 minutes until sauce thickens. Return pork and juices to pan and cook for another minute. Serve immediately over Keto riced cauliflower or quinoa or brown rice.
Certainly looks great!!!!!
Thank you Ellen for the compliment! Thank you for following my food blog and recipes.
Adding Bok Choy to my shopping list. Ready to try this delicious looking recipe.
Thank you for trying this recipe and following my cooking “KETO” blog! Happy “KETO” cooking!