Stir-Fried Mushrooms and Bok Choy

Donggu Pei Shucai

This is stir-frying at its purest and best: no sauce to make, no complicated steps to follow, just the judicious exposure of food to heat. Each ingredient remains in the wok long enough to undergo the desired transformation and not a moment longer; the mushrooms’ earthy fragrance seems to magnify many times over, while the bok choy takes on a vivid color and a mildly sweet flavor.

6 large dried mushrooms, such as shiitake

1 tbsp. canola oil

½ lb. small Shanghai or baby bok choy, halved lengthwise (about 10 heads)

¼ tsp. sugar Kosher salt, to taste

Serves 2–4

1. Put mushrooms into a medium bowl of water and soak for 2 hours. Drain and squeeze any excess water from the mushrooms and cut off their stems. Cut mushrooms into ¼ -inch thick slices. Heat a 14-inch wok (or skillet) over high heat until wok begins to smoke. Add oil around the edge of the wok and swirl to coat bottom and sides. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring and tossing constantly, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer mushrooms to a plate and set aside.

2. Return wok to high heat until it begins to smoke. Add bok choy cut side down, along with 2 tbsp. water, and cook, without stirring, until the water evaporates, about 1 minute.

3. Add sugar and season with salt. Vigorously stir and toss bok choy until it’s bright green and wilted, about 1 more minute.

4. Return mushrooms to wok, toss to combine, and cook until the flavors meld, about 30 seconds. Transfer mushrooms and bok choy to a serving platter and serve hot or at room temperature.

The Art of the Wok

In Beijing, where I live, I’ve met cooks from all over China, and they’ve taught me a lot about their respective regional cuisines. The one common denominator they all share is stir-frying—not a single technique, but a whole approach to cooking that involves quickly preparing dishes over high heat in a wok, with ingredients added in a measured progression so that each one cooks to the point of optimal flavor and texture.

One of the best stir-fry cooks I’ve ever met is Pan Suefen (pictured), a native of Taiwan who lives in Beijing. Suefen is fanatical about sourcing her ingredients, and stir-frying is a technique that brings out their best flavor and texture. For instance, stir-frying shiitake mushrooms, which she dries herself in her own living room, magnifies their earthy taste and fragrance. For such a delicious ingredient, Suefen insists, no sauce, no aromatics are called for; just heat, oil, salt, and sugar, applied with care. Constant stirring and flipping ensures that every morsel gets equal exposure to the center of the wok, where the heat is the most intense.

The mushrooms are cooked with bok choy, and I love the pleasing transformation the vegetable undergoes in the wok: the crunchy white stem develops a caramelized flavor as it’s left alone for a minute with its cut surface in direct contact with the wok, and the leaves wilt slightly, acquiring a mild sweetness as they cook.

What strikes me as I watch Suefen cook is the way that just a few elements—wok, oil, a handful of ingredients—can produce endlessly varied results depending on how a cook chooses to use them.

—Lillian Chou