Another favorite cold weather vegetable of mine, baby bok choy, is a type of Chinese cabbage. Its tender and flavorful stalks have made it somewhat popular in American supermarkets lately, and I've had no trouble finding it when it's in season. Like many greens, baby bok choy is high in calcium and has lots of other nutritional benefits. It's also quite yummy in stir-fries!
Start out by letting the tempeh soak up a nice Asian marinade. I like to use one that includes sake, sesame oil, rice vinegar, ginger and five spice powder. After it has marinated for a couple of hours, fry up the tempeh until it's nicely browned.
Next, make some chili garlic oil by sautéing sliced garlic and red pepper flakes. Add your shiitake mushrooms and stir-fry them until they just start to soften.
Now it's time to add the baby bok choy. Depending on the size of your cooking apparatus, you may have to add them in batches, letting them wilt in between to make more room in the wok or pan. This isn't ideal, since you want the bok choy to be stir-fried tender-crisp and not soggy, so just do your best at getting them in as quickly as you can.
When the bok choy has wilted leaves but stalks that are still slightly crunchy, stir your tempeh back in. Then add a sauce made from vegetable broth, vegetarian oyster sauce, soy sauce and cornstarch. The sauce should start simmering and thickening immediately. Once it has coated your veggies and tempeh with its savory goodness, your stir-fry is ready!
Stir Fried Tempeh With Baby Bok Choy and Shiitakes
Makes 4 Servings
Important: You'll want to allow yourself enough time to marinate the tempeh. I think it tastes best when marinated for at least 2 hours.
Ingredients
Tempeh
2 (8 oz) packages tempeh, diced
1/2 cup sake or rice wine
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
2 cloves garlic, smashed with the flat side of a knife
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder
Stir Fry
1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 tablespoons vegetarian oyster sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons peanut oil
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
6 oz shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, large ones quartered
8 baby bok choy, quartered lengthwise
thinly sliced scallions for garnish
Serve with: rice
Method
- Prepare the tempeh. Combine all marinade ingredients in a 9x13” dish. Add the tempeh and coat thoroughly in the marinade. Keep covered in the fridge for 2 hours, stirring once.
- Prepare the stir fry. Whisk together vegetable broth, vegetarian oyster sauce, soy sauce and cornstarch in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Coat a large wok or pan with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Drain tempeh and discard garlic cloves. Stir fry tempeh for 7-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Move to a medium bowl and set aside.
- Heat peanut oil in the wok. Stir fry garlic slices and red pepper flakes for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add mushrooms and stir-fry 1-2 minutes or until just tender. Add baby bok choy (in batches, if necessary) and stir fry another 2-3 minutes or until tender crisp. Return tempeh to the pan. Stir in broth and cornstarch mixture. Cook 1-2 minutes or until sauce thickens.
- Garnish with scallions and serve with rice.