Easy Chinese Yu Choy Sum

I always get excited when I see Chinese Yu Choy Sum on the menu at dim sum restaurants. This leafy green vegetable has a uniquely sweet flavor that sets it apart from other Chinese greens like broccoli with oyster sauce. When cooked just right, there’s nothing quite like the taste of tender, juicy Yu Choy Sum.

After all the dim sum noodles, meats, buns, and dumplings on the floor, we always look forward to the arrival of the cart-bearing plates of freshly chopped and stacked greens doused in oyster sauce. In addition to clearing your palate, leaving a restaurant having eaten something healthy will help ease any guilt you may feel about overindulging.

Despite this, the dish can be prepared in less than an hour and is perfect for a weeknight dinner. Washing some yu choy, boil some water, and in minutes we have a nutritious, tasty green vegetable side dish to go along with whatever protein we have planned for dinner. Right on time for all of your New Year’s resolutions!

Ingredients:

• 450g of yu choy
• 2 tablespoons of oil (divided)
• 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon of light soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil
• 1/8 teaspoon of ground white pepper

Instructions:

1. Clean the yu choy first. Yu choy, like all leafy greens, should be washed thoroughly three times to remove any last traces of dirt and sand from the leaves and stems. After the vegetables have been washed and are draining in a colander, you may start boiling water for them.
2. In the meantime, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a small saucepan over low heat for 30 seconds. Combine the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper, and stir into the dish. Bring the ingredients to a simmer and then remove them from the heat.
3. When the water boils, stir in 1 tablespoon of oil. Stir the yu choy in carefully. Once cooked, yu choy takes on a deep green hue. It only takes 30 seconds to blanch the yu choy, but if the stems are particularly thick or you prefer your vegetables on the softer side, you may cook them for up to a minute. If you’re still not convinced, remove a little sample (just like you would with cooked pasta) and give it a taste.
4. Once cooked, remove with tongs or chopsticks and arrange in a single layer along a serving dish. Some water may have dripped off the hot vegetables after you’ve served them. The sauce may turn out runny if you don’t carefully pour this off.
5. You can use kitchen shears to chop the vegetables in half if they are particularly lengthy. Alternatively, you can choose to leave them unaltered.
6. Serve the vegetables topped with the heated sauce.