Mì xào is stir fried noodles. Cải is a general term for any green leaf vegetable. In this particular dish, cải refers to baby bok choy.
Noodles with baby bok choy reminds me of my late nights in college studying for exams. My friend and I would order take out from an Asian restaurant across the street. My favorite dish was the vegetable lo mein filled with soft noodles and veggies.
When I got home, I told my mom about this dish and how I ate it at least twice a week. So she decided to create a healthier version for me. That’s how the noodles with baby bok choy dish was created.
What’s in noodles with baby bok choy?
Baby bok choy is a Chinese cabbage, and is part of the cruciferous vegetable category. They are similar to the full sized bok choy. The only difference is that they are smaller in size. Bok choy is a good source of vitamins and minerals. To me, the white part of the bok choy tastes crunchy, similar to that of a water chestnut, while the green leafy part tastes similar to spinach with a slight sweet flavor.
Baby bok choy is readily available in the produce section of any Asian grocery store. They come in prepackaged bags of varying weight. If you cannot find baby bok choy, you can click here to purchase. Or you can use regular bok choy, just make sure to give it a rough chop before sautéing.
The dish is very fast and simple to make. You can whip this up in 45 minutes or less. It only requires a few ingredients: noodles, bok choy, chopped garlic, oil, low sodium soy sauce, light and dark sesame oil. You can save even more time if you use the already chopped garlic. I always have a jar of already chopped garlic in the refrigerator for nights where I don’t have time to chop fresh garlic. The bok choy and noodles are sautéed separately with garlic and oil then combined, and that’s it, dinner is served!!!
The noodles I used are the vegetarian noodles because that’s what I had handy. However, if you cannot find this particular type of noodles, you can substitute any type of egg noodles.
Are light and dark sesame oil the same?
Let’s talk about the two different types of sesame oil in this dish. Before I started on this culinary adventure, I thought all sesame oil was the same, and boy was I wrong. As it turns out, there are two types of sesame oil. There’s the light and dark sesame oil. Light here refers to the color not the calorie content. You’re probably thinking…can I substitute one for the other? The answer is no because they each contain different properties…see below.
Differences between light and dark sesame oil
- Light sesame oil
- Use as cooking oil
- Has a high smoke point-good for frying
- Very faint flavor or scent (if any)
- Dark sesame oil
- Use as a garnishing oil or in salad dressing
- Has a low smoke point
- Has a distinct nutty flavor
Because of their different smoke point, I used the light sesame oil to sauté the noodles and baby bok choy. While reserving the dark sesame oil to add a nutty flavor to the dish at the end.
How to serve noodles with baby bok choy?
I like to serve this dish warm, with a sprinkle of crushed red peppers or a drizzle of hot sauce. The nice thing about it is you can serve it as a side dish or use it as the main course, and it is vegetarian friendly.
How to store left overs?
My husband goes crazy for this dish, so whenever I make it, it’s gone quickly. I strongly believe that he can live on this dish if he had too 🤣. After all, I cannot complain because it is healthy. There’s no special storage requirements for this. You can just put it in an air tight container in the fridge and it will last up to a week.
Noodles with Baby Bok Choy
Ingredients
- 6 cloves fresh garlic chopped.
- 2 pounds baby bok choy washed and ends cut off.
- 6 bundles of vegetarian noodles or any egg noodles.
- 2 tbsp light sesame oil 1 tbsp for saute-ing the baby bok choy and 1 tbsp for saute-ing the noodles.
- 1 tsp pepper ½ tsp for the baby bok choy and ½ tsp for the noodles.
- 1 tsp salt ½ tsp for the baby bok choy and ½ tsp for the noodles.
- 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce you can add more depending on your taste.
- ½ tsp sugar
- ¼ cup dark sesame oil
- chili flakes or siracha (optional)
Instructions
Instructions for cooking the baby bok choy:
- Remove the ends of the baby bok choy with a knife.
- Separate the baby bok choy leaves and place in a bowl with water to wash. Then place them in a colander to dry.
- Place the light sesame oil in a pan…
- Add chopped garlic…
- Then add baby bok choy, salt, pepper and saute until the leaves are wilted.
- Remove the baby bok choy from the pan and set aside.
Instructions for cooking the noodles:
- Place 6 bundles of dry noodles in a bowl.
- Add hot water to the noodles and let it soak for 10 minutes, or you can boil the noodles for 10 minutes on the stove.
- Drain and discard the water.
- Place the noodles in the same pan that the baby bok choy was sautéd in. Add to the noodles 1 tbsp light sesame oil, ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. Give it a quick toss to combine the ingredients. Turn the heat on low so the noodles don't burn.
- In a separate bowl, combine soy sauce and sugar. Mix well.
- Then add this mixture the pan containing the noodles, and toss until soy sauce is evenly distributed. Let the noodles cook until soft.
- When the noodles are soft, turn off the heat. Add in the sautéd baby bok choy, dark sesame oil and toss to make sure ingredients are well combined before serving.
Before you reach for that take-out menu to order vegetable lo mein, give this healthier recipe a try. Looking for more healthy take-out alternatives? Try my egg rolls and fried rice with Chinese sausage recipes.
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