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This spicy garlic bok choy features tender baby bok choy stir fried with fresh garlic, chili oil, soy sauce, sesame oil, a hint of sugar and Shaoxing wine.
It's the perfect side dish with steamed rice and your favorite protein! The bok choy leaves absorb the flavorful chili garlic sauce making these vegetables so tasty!
This garlic chili bok choy is a scrumptious way to add more vegetables into our diet and great for anyone who is a picky eater.
Unfortunately this spicy version is not often served at Chinese restaurants but don't worry it's simple enough to make at home!
The best part about this Asian bok choy recipe is it's made with simple ingredients in little time making it a great veggie side dish on busy weeknights or for meal prep!
If you're not a fan of bok choy, you can easily swap it for cabbage, broccoli, yu choy sum, or gai-lan!
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
- Fresh Baby Bok Choy (aka Baby Pak Choi): ideally mini baby bok choy with dark green leaves and a green or white stalk. Or substitute with chopped regular sized bok choy, yu choy sum, baby gai-lan (or Chinese broccoli), or cabbage.
- Neutral oil: like avocado oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil or canola oil with a high smoke point. Avoid olive oil or any heavy scented oils with a low smoke point.
- Garlic Cloves
- Water: cold or room temperature to cook the vegetables faster.
Spicy Sauce
- Chili Oil or Chili Crisp in Oil. Either store-bought or homemade chili oil will work so use one that you enjoy! Or substitute garlic chili sauce as a last resort. Avoid substituting with sriracha sauce or hot sauce.
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce. If you’re gluten-free, substitute with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce of your choice.
- Sesame oil: or substitute with toasted sesame seeds. If you're allergic to sesame, omit completely.
- Shaoxing wine: a Chinese rice cooking wine. Or substitute with Dry Sherry. For a non-alcoholic or gluten-free version, substitute with any broth.
- White Granulated Sugar: to help balance the salty flavors.
Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients or check online stores, like Amazon.
Expert Tips
- Wash the baby boy choy well as there can be dirt and insects hidden between the leaves.
- Use a chili oil that you enjoy! Homemade or store-bought work for this recipe.
- Prepare all your ingredients in advance as the cooking process is very fast!
- Sauté the garlic on low heat to infuse the cooking oil with that garlicky flavor.
- Do not burn the garlic or the dish will taste bitter and you'll have to start over.
- Do not over cook the bok choy in the sauce or it'll pull out more water from the vegetables into the sauce.
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make spicy garlic bok choy:
- Slice baby bok choy into halves. Rinse the halved baby bok choy in cold water until it runs clear, and leaves are clean. Shake out as much excess water as possible. Set aside in the colander to continue straining.
- In a small bowl, combine spicy sauce ingredients as listed above and set aside.
- Heat vegetable oil in large pan on low-medium heat. Add minced garlic and sauté for 10 seconds or until fragrant.
- Increase to medium-high heat. Add in baby bok choy followed by water to help cook the veggies faster. Stir fry and cook until bok choy is softened, about 2-4 minutes.
- Once leaves have softened, pour sauce on top and toss together and once the sauce is mixed through remove off heat and enjoy!
Storage
- Leftovers will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat: microwave for 2-3 minutes until hot or reheat in a pan on medium heat.
- Freezer-friendly? I don't recommend freezing spicy garlic bok choy because the freezer will make the bok choy mushy.
Pairing Suggestions
Spicy garlic bok choy serves well with:
- starters like egg rolls, crab rangoons, egg drop soup, hot and sour soup
- white or brown rice, cauliflower rice, or fried rice
- chow mein, lo mein, plain noodles, soup noodles
- protein dishes like Ginger Chicken, Mongolian Beef, Honey Walnut Shrimp, Bang Bang Shrimp, Shrimp Omelet, Soy Garlic Tofu, and more!
FAQ
Spicy garlic bok choy can be made up to 4 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat, microwave or in a pan on the stovetop on medium heat.
The chili oil can be omitted if you prefer this dish not spicy.
I recommend the brand Lan Gao Ma. It's the jar with the red lid and red label with a Chinese man on it.
📖 Recipe
Easy 10-min. Spicy Garlic Bok Choy
Ingredients
- 1 lb baby bok choy or chopped regular bok choy, yu choy sum, baby gai-lan, cabbage
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- 8 cloves garlic minced
- ⅓ cup water room temperature/cold
Spicy Sauce
- 1.5 tablespoon chili oil or chili crisp in oil
- 1 tablespoon regular soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon Shaoxing wine or Dry Sherry Wine or chicken broth for a non-alcoholic version
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ¼ teaspoon white granulated sugar
Instructions
- Slice baby bok choy into halves.
- Rinse the halved baby bok choy in cold water until it runs clear, and leaves are clean. Shake out as much excess water as possible. Set aside in the colander to continue straining.
- In a small bowl, combine spicy sauce ingredients as listed above and set aside.
- Heat vegetable oil in large pan on low-medium heat. Add minced garlic and sauté for 10 seconds or until fragrant.
- Increase to medium-high heat. Add in baby bok choy followed by water to help cook the veggies faster. Stir fry and cook until bok choy is softened, about 2-4 minutes.
- Once leaves have softened, pour sauce on top and toss together and once the sauce is mixed through remove off heat and enjoy!
Hiroko
I wanted to make an easy healthy bokchoy dish, and your TikTok video showed up on my google search. I’m Japanese and a fan of those chili oil jars from China, so I made your recipe tonight. They are really delicious. Mine got pretty saucy, so next time I may add a bit of potato starch water to thicken the sauce (the sauce is super good). Thank you for sharing!
Christie Lai
Thank you so much for making my recipe and for sharing your positive experience with us! So glad you enjoyed it and the potato starch is a great idea if you want a thicker sauce 🙂
Bob
Wow flavour town here! This was so good, easy and simple.
Christie Lai
Amazing! Thank you.
Mauricio
This was so flavorful and easy to make! A hit with my wife and I.