GREENS
100g/3½oz green beans
2 pak choi/bok choy
100g/1 cup mangetout/snow peas
1tbsp sesame oil
SAUCE
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1tbsp dark soya sauce
1tbsp oyster sauce (or a vegetarian oyster sauce)
1tsp chilli sauce (sweet or spicy, depending on your taste)
1tsp sesame oil
AND
1tbsp sesame seeds
I did say that the food in this section takes time, but this dish is the work of moments. It’s a great accompaniment to a piece of grilled fish, a steak, or a curry, but I most often eat big bowls of it on its own, or with a little bowl of steamed rice alongside. When I’ve been out of the house for a while, especially if I haven’t found access to a kitchen somewhere and had the chance to cook my own food, it’s the dish I come home craving.
Serves 4 as a side, or 2 as a meal
1. Prep all the veg – top and tail the beans, take the ends off the pak choi and cut it into strips; rinse anything that needs a little attention.
2. Whisk the sauce ingredients together, and have them ready beside the hob before you start cooking.
3. Place a wok, or wide pan, over a high heat. Drop the sesame seeds in, and move them around for 30 seconds, until they turn a golden brown. Remove and keep to one side.
4. Warm the sesame oil until it starts to smoke, and then drop in the hard stalks of the pak choi. Stir fry for a minute or two, moving them around the pan, and then add the beans. After another couple of minutes, add the mangetout and the pak choi leaves.
5. Once everything is a bright, vibrant green, pour in the sauce. Cook for a final minute, stirring constantly.
6. Serve immediately, topped with the toasted sesame seeds.