Ong Choy Redux

[Tepee]

Ewwwwwwwww

This brings me to the question.....knowing the 'secret' behind why the ong choy tasted so good, would you still eat it?

This reminds me of something DH told me. He said when he was very young, he used to see the bao lo take in a mouthful of water and "ptui!" on the baos as they were taken out of the steamer, to put a sheen to the bao skin. I was oblivious to that fact and blissfully partaked in my baos. Nowadays, they use a sprayer. Thank goodness! Of course, if I know of any bao man doing that spewing act in this day and age, I'd report him to the authorities!!!

Edited to add: Just remembered. Everyone used to peel off the bao skin before they ate the bao. And no wonder!

Edited July 21, 2005 by Tepee (log)

[Dejah]

Ewwwwwwwww

Edited to add: Just remembered. Everyone used to peel off the bao skin before they ate the bao. And no wonder!

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Funny, now that you mentioned this fact, I remember Mom always peeling the skin off purchased baos.

One should make a collection of all these little informative notes.

[SuzySushi]

This reminds me of something DH told me. He said when he was very young, he used to see the bao lo take in a mouthful of water and "ptui!" on the baos as they were taken out of the steamer, to put a sheen to the bao skin. I was oblivious to that fact and blissfully partaked in my baos. Nowadays, they use a sprayer. Thank goodness! Of course, if I know of any bao man doing that spewing act in this day and age, I'd report him to the authorities!!!

Edited to add: Just remembered. Everyone used to peel off the bao skin before they ate the bao. And no wonder!

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Eeeek!!! This is the first I've heard of that practice!!! (Of course, the heat from the steamer would probably sterilize any germs, but even so....)

[noodle fan]

I raised the surrender flag stir frying this vegetable at home because, invariably, by the time I plate it and serve it at the table it has turned or beginning to turn the color of very dark olive green and is chewy and dry. I had a very hot wok and stir fried for just about a minute. A very sad contrast to the Google images of the dish that had a bright green color and a bit of sauce I drool on. 

[MokaPot]

1 hour ago, noodle fan said:

I raised the surrender flag stir frying this vegetable at home because, invariably, by the time I plate it and serve it at the table it has turned or beginning to turn the color of very dark olive green and is chewy and dry. I had a very hot wok and stir fried for just about a minute. A very sad contrast to the Google images of the dish that had a bright green color and a bit of sauce I drool on. 

 

IME, ong choy, when cooked, is dark green (leaves are darker than stems). The stems part is chewy & crunchy, but not woody, IIRC. Maybe you can try cooking it a little longer or a lot longer.

[heidih]

1 hour ago, noodle fan said:

I raised the surrender flag stir frying this vegetable at home because, invariably, by the time I plate it and serve it at the table it has turned or beginning to turn the color of very dark olive green and is chewy and dry. I had a very hot wok and stir fried for just about a minute. A very sad contrast to the Google images of the dish that had a bright green color and a bit of sauce I drool on. 

 

Don't surrender. I watched ladies make it and prefer the spicy fermented tofu like an earlier post. And it needs a bit of liquid in the process. Where are you sourcing it?  enjoy all greens and this is a favorite. 

[liuzhou]

Round here it's known as 空心菜 (kōng xīn cài, literally 'hollow heart vegetable') and yes, when cooked it is usually dark green.

 

Edited August 19, 2020 by liuzhou (log)