WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS Part of the allure of cooking with baby bok choy is showing off its diminutive size. But if you leave it whole, it’s difficult to clean properly. Cutting the bok choy in half lengthwise provided access to the areas where most of the dirt and grit typically hide so we could thoroughly clean them. Cutting them in half also helped them cook more evenly, so the stalks became perfectly tender-crisp before the leaves went limp. We spun the bok choy dry in a salad spinner after washing in order to avoid adding too much water to the skillet. An initial stint of steaming gave the stems the head start they needed to soften slightly before sautéing. A mixture of miso, mirin, and sugar formed the base of a salty-sweet sauce. If using heads larger than 2 ounces each, quarter them instead of halving. You will need a 12-inch nonstick skillet with a tight-fitting lid for this recipe.

Serves 4

Total time: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 4 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 tablespoons white miso
• 1 tablespoon mirin
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ½ teaspoon cornstarch
• 8 small heads baby bok choy (1½ to 2 ounces each), halved, washed thoroughly, and spun dry

PREPARATION

1. Combine 1 teaspoon oil, ginger, and garlic in a small bowl. Whisk miso, mirin, sugar, and cornstarch together in a second small bowl.
2. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering.
3. Add bok choy and 2 tablespoons water and immediately cover.
4. Cook, covered, shaking skillet occasionally, for 2 minutes.
5. Uncover, toss bok choy, and then push bok choy to the sides of the skillet.
6. Add the ginger-garlic mixture to the center and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 20 seconds.
7. Stir the ginger-garlic mixture into the bok choy and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until all water has evaporated, stems are crisp-tender, and leaves are wilted, 1 to 2 minutes.
8. Add miso mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is thickened and coats the bok choy, about 15 seconds.
9. Serve.

VARIATIONS

• SAUTÉED BABY BOK CHOY WITH CHILI-GARLIC SAUCE:
  Omit ginger. Substitute 1 tablespoon soy sauce for miso and chili-garlic sauce for mirin. Increase garlic to 2 cloves and decrease sugar to 1 teaspoon.

• SAUTÉED BABY BOK CHOY WITH SHALLOT AND FISH SAUCE:
  Omit ginger. Substitute 1 tablespoon fish sauce for miso, water for mirin and brown sugar for white sugar. Increase cornstarch to 1 teaspoon. Add 2 tablespoons minced shallot to garlic mixture and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes to fish sauce mixture in step 1.