Crunchy Bok Choy Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing
This incredibly flavorful Crunchy Bok Choy Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing is so delicious. The spicy peanut dressing covers the tender baby Bok Choy, red bell pepper, cool cucumber, freshly shredded carrots, scallions, edamame, peanuts, and crunchy noodles. This wholesome salad has crunch, sweetness, and some heat. I like to top it with sliced red jalapeño chile pepper, black sesame seeds, and lots of fresh cilantro leaves. I promise you will love this vegetarian salad!
Table of contents
Why we love this salad and you will too!
This crave-worthy salad is so full of incredible flavor, texture, and crunch. So much going on in one bowl! You’ve got the tender slices of baby Bok Choy, sweet shredded carrots, red bell pepper, cucumber, scallions, and shelled, cooked edamame. Add some extra crunch (because more is more) with some crunchy chow mein noodles and peanuts. Garnish it with some red jalapeño, fresh cilantro and some black sesame seeds. And the final flourish? The Spicy Peanut dressing that is SO GOOD. If you want to serve this for dinner, add a grilled chicken breast with a little Teriyaki sauce for a perfect dinner. We love Asian flavors in every form and if you do too, make sure you try our Creamy Sesame Rice Noodles, my Classic Chinese Chicken Salad with Creamy Sesame Dressing, or my Soba Noodle Teriyaki Chicken Salad.
What is Bok Choy and how to use it
Bok Choy, is a variety of Chinese cabbage also known as pak choi or pok choi. It’s a leafy type of cabbage that can be found in mature size, and also the baby variety. I grew up eating this type of cabbage as my parents were heavy on the vegetables for every meal and stir fry was something my mom made frequently. Bok Choy is her go-to green vegetable. In addition to adding this crunchy vegetable to stir fry, it is equally delicious eaten raw in a salad or slaw.
The flavor of Bok Choy is quite mild. I find the baby variety, is tender and very mild. For this salad, I recommend the baby variety.
How to make the Spicy Peanut Dressing
This Spicy Peanut Dressing is the consistency of a vinaigrette. It’s perfect to get around all those veggies, peanuts, crunchy noodles and sesame seeds. For this dressing, you will need the following ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons of seasoned rice vinegar
- 4 tablespoons of low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons of honey
- 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, granulated
- 1 teaspoon of curry powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of Sriracha
- 1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon white pepper, ground
- 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, creamy variety
- tiny pinch of Kosher salt
Using a small bowl, add the seasoned rice vinegar and soy sauce. Add honey, sugar, curry powder, Sriracha, white pepper, and garlic powder. Use a small whisk, and mix until combined. Add peanut butter and whisk until fully blended. Adjust all of the salt and spices to suit your taste, this dressing is fully adaptable to suit your taste. The finished consistency will be that of a vinaigrette.
Preparation of the salad ingredients
Let’s prepare the salad ingredients for this Crunchy Bok Choy Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing. You will need a large bowl ready for all the salad ingredients.
- 3 heads of baby Bok Choy, well-washed, dried, and thinly sliced
- 1/2 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded and thinly sliced
- 1 carrot, medium, fresh grated
- 1/2 cup cucumber, English, seeded and cut into match sticks or cubed
- 1 scallion, top removed, sliced at an angle
- 1/2 cup of cooked, shelled edamame (cooled)
- 1/2 cup of dry roasted, unsalted peanuts
- 1 cup of crunchy chow mein noodles or dry, crumbled ramen noodles
Garnishes
- 1 teaspoon roasted black sesame seeds
- Cilantro leaves for garnish
- Red jalapeño thinly sliced for garnish and additional heat
The baby Bok Choy should be well-washed and dried. Bok Choy grows low to the ground, so it’s not unusual to find a lot of soil on the vegetables. I prefer to rinse the heads of Bok Choy well, slice them, and rewash and spin them in a salad spinner. Once the Bok Choy is washed, dried, and sliced, add the Bok Choy to the large bowl.
For the rest of the vegetables, it’s pretty straightforward. The red bell pepper should be thinly sliced, the cucumber cut into matchstick-sized pieces or cubed. I highly recommend freshly shredded carrots because they impart a natural sweetness to the salad. The scallion should have the top removed and sliced at a diagonal. The edamame should be cooked and cooled. Typically edamame can be found shelled and it takes a few minutes in the microwave. Now you can portion the crunchy noodles and the peanuts.
The garnishes are optional but highly suggested!
How to assemble the Crunchy Bok Choy Salad
Once all the vegetables are prepared and placed in the bowl, add the chow mein noodles and dry roasted peanuts. Add the Spicy Peanut Dressing and toss gently. Divide the salad into 4 equal portions and garnish with fresh cilantro leaves, jalapeño, and black sesame seeds.
Frequently asked questions
Grilled chicken or shrimp is perfect for this salad. I typically recommend using store-bought Teriyaki sauce to make something quick and basting the chicken or shrimp with it.
Yes! Just add the peanuts, crunchy noodles, garnishes, and the Spicy peanut dressing upon serving.
Yes, you can use Napa cabbage or even Romaine lettuce.
Enjoy!
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Crunchy Bok Choy Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing
March 21, 2024Equipment
- 1 bowl small
- 1 whisk small
- 1 bowl large
Ingredients
Dressing
- 4 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
- 4 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon siracha
- 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon white pepper ground
- 2 tablespoon peanut butter creamy
Salad
- 3 heads of baby Bok Choy small, thin sliced
- 1/2 cup of cucumber cut into matchsticks
- 1/2 red bell pepper cut into matchsticks
- 1/2 cup freshly shredded carrot
- 1 large scallion cut into a diagonal
- 1/2 cup edamame shelled cooked
- 1/4 cup crispy chow mein noodles or dry ramen noodles
- 1/4 cup dry roasted unsalted peanuts
Garnishes
- red jalapeno thinly sliced
- black sesame seeds
- fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
Spicy peanut dressing
- Using a small bowl, add the seasoned rice vinegar and soy sauce.
- Add honey, sugar, curry powder, Sriracha, white pepper, and garlic powder.
- Use a small whisk, and mix until combined.
- Add peanut butter and whisk until fully blended.
- Adjust all of the spices to suit your taste, this dressing is fully adaptable to suit your taste.
- The finished consistency will be that of a vinaigrette.
Salad preparatioon
- Wash the baby Bok choy well. Slice the root end and slice thinly. Now place sliced bok choy in a salad spinner or colander and rinse well again. Once its been rinsed a second time, dry well.
- Bok Choy grows low to the ground, so it's not unusual to find a lot of soil on the vegetables.
- Add the sliced Bok Choy to a large bowl.
- Core and seed the red bell pepper and slice thin lengthwise. If the pepper is very long, cut those pieces in half so they are the length of a matchstick.
- Cut the cucumber into matchstick-sized pieces or cubes.
- Using a box shredder, freshly shred the carrot.
- Remove the top of the scallion and slice at a diagonal.
- Cook and cool the shelled edamame.
- Now you can portion the crunchy noodles and the peanuts.
- Add all of the vegetables and dry ingredients to the bowl with sliced bok choy.
- Add the spicy peanut dressing and toss well.
- Garnish with fresh Cilantro leaves, black sesame seeds and fresh sliced jalapeño. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated online and should be used as a guide.
All content and photographs ©Claudia’s Table and claudiastable.com
