Bok Choy (Dried)

by | Dec 29, 2008 | Ingredients | 0 comments

Ingredient Name:

Bok Choy (Dried) or Chinese Cabbage

Traditional Chinese Name:

菜乾 (cài gān)

This ingredient is sweet to taste and cooling in nature. 

For soup videos, visit us on YouTube!

 

Bok choy is  cooler ingredients relative to its cabbage cousins and targets the stomach and large intestines.  It’s also a great for clearing excess water and detoxifying the body, including aiding in digestion. 

Dried bok choy is more salty (and even sweet) relative to it’s fresh counterpart.  It’s actually super tasty and they have the same properties (even when dried!). Drying the bok choy dates back from Chinese history as a way to preserve the vegetable after the harvest season and has a very long shelf life once dried if stored in cool, dry places.  It becomes somewhat brittle and hard, but has a very fragrant smell to it and is even more delicious when softened and cooked.

There are actually a lot of uses for dried bok choy.  You can use them soups, stews, stir fry, even in dumplings (chopped up)!  They are a versatile ingredient and pretty common in Chinese cuisines.  They have somewhat of a chewy texture (it’s all that fiber), but soften super nicely in soup and stews.  

 

How do I prepare it?

    Soak in cool water until it’s completely softened and limp (like it flows with the water).  Be sure to completely soak and rinse it a few times as the curing process tends to attract a lot of flies and you’ll see them surface out as you wash these vegetables.

    Where can I buy it?

        • Dried bok choy is most common in Asian supermarkets

    What is the cost?

        • Dried bok choy isn’t very expensive cost around $3-4 CAD per pack of dried bok choy

    Any benefits?

    • Bok choy is a good source of calcium, vitamin C, and is high in antioxidants
    • It is a high fibre and low calorie vegetable
    • It is sustainable in growth in a variety of weather conditions and therefore can easily be grown almost anywhere in the world
    • This is a cooling ingredients, so can help reduce heat in the body

    Any precautions?

        • Since it’s cooling (is a yin ingredient), take caution to consume if you’ve got excess yin or yang deficiency

        • Be sure to thoroughly soak them and rinse them in running water a few times.  These tend to harbor so many little bugs that the children will find!

    Looking to build your basic Chinese Soup Pantry?

    Check it out in my video to learn more!

     

    EXPLORE MORE

    6 Practical Applications of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Every Day Life

    6 PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS OF TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE IN EVERY DAY LIFE(A TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE PERSPECTIVE)Practicing and living in Traditional Chinese Medicine concepts isn't hard!  It's actually all about what you consume, when you consume it, your...

    Green radish with carrots & corn in a Chinese herbal pork broth

    Soup Name: Green radish with carrots & corn in a Chinese Herbal Pork Broth Traditional Chinese Name: 紅青蘿蔔湯 (hóng qing luóbo tang) Nature:  Cooling Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.My parents came home last night from a cruise...

    Hot and slightly spicy Korean Kimchi and Tofu Jjigae (soup)

    Soup Name: Korean  Kimchi and Tofu Jjigae (Soup) Nature:  Cool (although could be warmer depending on how spicy you make it, but this is driven by the cooling white radish and tofu) Taste:  Sweet, Salty For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.I know there's a...

    How food flavours affect your health from a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective

    HOW FOOD FLAVOURS AFFECT YOUR HEALTH(A TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE PERSPECTIVE)There is a Chinese Medicine phrase that states "Food and Medicine come from the same source".   If you think about it, it totally does!  All of the ingredients found within Traditional...

    Papaya and Snow Fungus in a Pork Herbal Soup

    Tea Name: Papaya and Snow Fungus in a Pork Herbal Soup Chinese Name:  木瓜雪耳豬骨湯 (mù gua xuě ěr zhū gǔ tāng) Nature:  Warm and ideal for moisturizing the body and lungs, supporting digestion and soothing the stomach. Taste:  Sweet For more videos, you can follow us on...

    Green radish with carrots & corn in a Chinese herbal pork broth

    Soup Name: Green radish with carrots & corn in a Chinese Herbal Pork Broth Traditional Chinese Name: 紅青蘿蔔湯 (hóng qing luóbo tang) Nature:  Cooling Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.My parents came home last night from a cruise...

    Hot and slightly spicy Korean Kimchi and Tofu Jjigae (soup)

    Soup Name: Korean  Kimchi and Tofu Jjigae (Soup) Nature:  Cool (although could be warmer depending on how spicy you make it, but this is driven by the cooling white radish and tofu) Taste:  Sweet, Salty For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.I know there's a...

    Chinese-Styled Cream of Corn Egg Drop Soup

    Tea Name: Chinese-Styled Cream of Corn and Egg Drop Soup Chinese Name:  玉米湯 (yù mǐ tāng)   Nature:  Warm Taste:  Sweet, Salty For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.There are as many versions of a Chinese-styled corn and egg drop soup as there are likely ABC...

    Oh how I love thee, my salted orange! Let me count the ways…

    Tea Name: The Salted Orange Traditional Chinese Name: 鹽蒸橙子 (yán zhēng chéngzi) Nature:  warm Taste:  sweet, salty For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.What?  Salted oranges? Let's start by saying that if you see a Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor (and even...

    Healing Chinese Herbal Soup

    Soup Name: Healing Chinese Herbal Soup Traditional Chinese Name: 北芪黨參消腫養陰湯 (běi qí dǎngshēn xiāo zhǒng yǎng yīn tāng) For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.This soup is perfect for anyone who wants to replenish and strengthen blood and qi, has poor...