Indian Spiced Bok Choy

By Thepickyeater @pickyeaterblog

I’m a firm believer that Indian spices make just about any vegetable taste delicious.

The flavors are just so pungent and aromatic, it brings life to veggies that can otherwise be considered kind of boring on their own. Somehow adding the Indian flavors of cumin, mustard seeds, green chiles, turmeric transform just about anything into an exotic creation.

My mom used to love adding Indian spices to every dish you can imagine: vegetables, rice, yogurt, corn on the cob (no joke, try it with some masala and lemon – it is amazing), you get the idea.

One of my favorite memories of her is finding her in our kitchen, reading the newspaper with glasses that were the wrong prescription, eating Indian spiced vegetables straight out of the tupperware from the night before.

I used to think she was so weird, and I made fun of her when I was a kid.

Fast forward 15 years later, and I’m doing the same thing!

It just tastes so good, I can literally just eat it straight as a snack and feel happy and satisfied. Now the husband makes fun of me and thinks I’m weird. I wonder what he’ll be doing in a few years!

This Bok Choy recipe is one of my favorites. Normally, I’m not a fan of Bok Choy in stir frys because the pieces are too big, it’s really chewy and too tough to get through. But in this recipe, the Bok Choy is diced into tiny pieces, and ends up feeling more like swiss chard – tender and melts in your mouth.

It is super easy to make, high in fiber, and really low in calories – the perfect side or snack!

The Ingredients: 

  • 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 heads bok choy, diced
  • 1/2 red onion, chopped
  • 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1/2 green chile
  • 1/8 tsp hing or Asafoetida
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • Salt to taste
The Directions: Step 1: Heat your oil in a medium sized pan over medium-high heat. Add the spices and the green chile and stir until the mustard and cumin seeds pop.Step 2: Once the spices are popping, throw in your onions. Cook down the onions until they are caramelized.Step 3: Add the bok choy, and cook until the bok choy has cooked down. When you throw it in the pan it will look like this:And when it’s done cooking, it’ll look like this:Once it caramelizes and cooks down, you are done! Serve yourself a healthy portion…And enjoy it with some naan / roti / rice and low fat yogurt for a snack or a light lunch/dinner.This entire recipe has about 450 calories, 32g fiber and 40g protein (1 head of bok choy has about 100 calories, 8g fiber and 10g protein). And trust me – this entire recipe is a HUGE portion – it can serve 4 people easily. It’s also vegan and gluten-free so just about anyone can enjoy it.The best part is, it tastes so good you’ll have eaten a ton of it without really noticing – and all of it will be so good for you. I hope you enjoy this as much as I do, and if anyone develops my “snacking on Indian spiced veggies” habit, you have to let me know! Indian Spiced Bok Choy by Anjali Shah @ The Picky Eater

4 Servings; Nutritional Info per serving: 100 calories, 8g fiber, 10g protein

The Ingredients: 

  • 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 heads bok choy, diced
  • 1/2 red onion, chopped
  • 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1/2 green chile
  • 1/8 tsp hing or Asafoetida
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • Salt to taste
The Directions:  Step 1: Heat your oil in a medium sized pan over medium-high heat. Add the spices and the green chile and stir until the mustard and cumin seeds pop. Step 2: Once the spices are popping, throw in your onions. Cook down the onions until they are caramelized. Step 3: Add the bok choy, and cook until the bok choy has cooked down. Enjoy!