The Chinese broccoli is steamed and served with stir fried mushrooms and a scrumptious brown sauce. It’s a quick and delicious way to put plenty of veggies on your dinner table. {Vegetarian, Gluten-Free Adaptable}
Chinese broccoli (芥蓝, Gai Lan) is a leaf vegetable with big, thick, flat leaves and fat stems. It is one of the most popular and widely used leafy vegetables in Chinese and Asian cuisines. The vegetable has a bitter note and is slightly sweet. My favorite part about Gai Lan is its texture. The stalk has a crunchy texture like asparagus, only juicier. The leaves are meaty and soak up plenty of sauce once cooked.
One of the easiest ways to prepare Chinese broccoli is to blanch it, then serve it with oyster sauce. You can see that recipe here. When I developed the recipe below, I used a slightly different approach – steam the Chinese broccoli in a large skillet, then use the same skillet to prepare the mushroom sauce. This method shortens the cooking time and allows you to cook everything in one pan.
I made a simple brown sauce instead of the usual oyster sauce, so you can enjoy it even if you follow a vegetarian diet. Of course, if you miss the more complex notes of the oyster sauce, you can use a tablespoon of oyster sauce to replace one tablespoon of soy sauce in the recipe.
Cooking notes
- Try to buy smaller stalks (with diameters of about 1/2” or 1 cm) with fresh-looking, dark green leaves. The smaller-sized stalks of Chinese broccoli have a tenderer texture.
- If the stalks of Chinese broccoli are very thick, split the stalk in half lengthwise, so it will take less time to cook through the stalk without overcooking the leafy part.
- Use a peeler to remove the tough surface of the stalk. It creates a better mouthfeel.
That’s it!
Try out this simple veggie dish next time you see Chinese broccoli at the grocery store. It is so good that I wouldn’t mind serving it as a main dish for a light dinner 🙂
More easy veggie dishes
- Chinese 4-Ingredient Fried Cabbage
- Garlic Spinach in Chicken Broth
- Cabbage Glass Noodles Stir Fry
- Fried Potato, Eggplant and Pepper in Garlic Sauce
- 3-Ingredient Garlic Broccoli Stir Fry
If you give this recipe a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it (once you’ve tried it), and take a picture and tag it @omnivorescookbook on Instagram! I’d love to see what you come up with.
An Easy Chinese Broccoli Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 bunch Chinese broccoli (Gai Lan) , about 1 lb (450 g)
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil , or vegetable oil
- 4 cloves garlic , grated
- 1/2 lb (450 g) white mushrooms , sliced (*Footnote 1)
Sauce
- 1 cup vegetable stock (or water)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce (Optional) (*Footnote 2)
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Mix all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
- Add 1/4 cup water to a large skillet and heat over medium high heat. When the water starts to boil, spread the Chinese broccoli in the skillet, and sprinkle with pinch of salt. Cover and let steam until the Chinese broccoli just turns tender, 2 to 3 minutes, depending on the size. Flip once or twice in between and check the doneness. Transfer to a big plate when cooked.
- Wipe the residual water with a few layers of kitchen paper towel held in a pair of tongs. Add the oil and garlic. Stir a few times to release the fragrance.
- Add the mushrooms. Stir and cook until golden, about 2 minutes. Turn to medium low heat.
- Stir the sauce again to fully dissolve the cornstarch. Pour sauce into skillet. Immediately stir until it thickens. Pour the sauce over the cooked Chinese broccoli.
- Serve hot as a side.
Notes
- Other types of mushrooms work, too.
- The dark soy sauce adds an appetizing dark brown color to the sauce. You can skip it if you do not have any on hand.
My husband (originally from Anhui, China) was planning to cook this veggie side dish for our Easter family potluck lunch today. However, he was not feeling very well and I needed to step in to cook it myself. Thank you for your clear directions for this basic dish! It was very tasty – even if my Grandma thought it was spinach 😉
Swapped soy sauce for tamari to make this gluten free. Was not a problem. It came out tasting like a restaurant quality dish and it was not hard to make at all.
Made tonight. I had leftover Hainanese chicken and needed veggies. This was perfect!! This will be in rotation. Thank you.
just followed your recipe and all turned out great… thanks
excellent side dash, quick & easy
I made this for dinner last night with frog legs. My husband loved the mushrooms with the broccoli easy to make and delicious. Did not think I could do it. Thanks for you step by step recipes. I feel like a chef, LOL
Really good recipe. I used a tablespoon of oyster sauce and of sesame oil. Thanks again.
I love your recipes, not to mention the pictures. Unfortunately, I cannot acquire the proper ingredients where I am now. Thank you for sharing.