Dim Sum Style Gai-Lan (Chinese Broccoli)

Submitted by cookiedog

"This tastes just like the Gai-Lan that my DBF and I get when we go to Dim Sum on Sundays. It is really easy to make at home. It is similar to regular broccoli but it is slightly milder and has broad flat leaves instead of florets. If you can't find Gai Lan, you can substitute broccolini. The baking soda helps the broccoli retain its green color while cooking."

 

• Ready In: 15mins
• Ingredients: 10
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 1 lb gai lan or 1 lb chinese broccoli
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 garlic clove, sliced
• 1 inch gingerroot (1 inch piece, peeled)
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

• Sauce

• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 3 tablespoons water or 3 tablespoons chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon mirin or 1 tablespoon dry sherry
• 1 tablespoon sugar

directions

1. Gai Lan: Rinse gai lan and trim the end of the stems. Bring eight cups of water to a boil in a large saucepan or stock pot. Stir in salt, baking soda, garlic and ginger. Add gai-lan. Cover and simmer about 4 minutes, until the gai lan turns bright green and is tender-crisp. Drain and serve drizzled with the oyster sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds.
2. Sauce: Mix oyster sauce with water or broth, mirin and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil to melt the sugar. Remove from heat.

Reviews

[Leggy Peggy]

This is the first time I have cooked Chinese broccoli at home and it won't be the last. We aren't big sweet fans, so I used only 1 teaspoon of sugar and followed everything else. Made to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

 

[Deborah C.]

I'm mostly Chinese (and part Japanese). This recipe worked well for me. It's quite authentic and very tasty! I used my own oyster sauce that I always have in my fridge. It's All Natural and very healthy, from KAME (brand name). Only things I would change about the instructions are: 1) use a peeler to peel off the outer skin of the hard stalk/stems 2) to throw in the end pieces of Gai Lan first, then simmer for 3 minutes, then throw in the leaves for cook for just 1 minutes. End pieces always takes longer to cook.

 

[Hemlock Tea]

I had dim sum for the first time about a month ago and I've been dreaming about the Chinese broccoli ever since. This recipe tasted just like the stuff I had at the dim sum place. I used the water option in making the sauce (instead of chicken broth) and it tasted just fine. I also doubled the sauce since I don't have a small saucepan, and I'll use it on more gai lan and other green veggies later in the week.

 

[Maito]

With a little tweaking the basics of this could produce the really wonderful dish you get in Chinese restaurants. It was super overcooked, so I would check it at 1 minute (or just stir fry it), and use only oyster sauce for the topping; the sauce was too liquidy and wine-y for our tastes.

 

[Coasty]

We love our greens and this tasted just like the ones they serve at Yum Cha, quick, easy and health. Made for ZWT 6