Nai Bai 奶白菜 (Bok Choy Sum/Dwarf or Baby Pak Choi/Milk Cabbage – thanks to commenters for the English names) is my favourite Chinese green at the moment. The leaves are curl, wrinkled and dark green with short stems resembling a miniature baby bok choy.
We love this vegetable for its leafy and crunchy texture after cooking, and a simple plate of stir-fried Nai Bai (清炒奶白菜) makes its appearance on our dinner table almost weekly. This is a quick stir-fry and I usually serve it with a meat side dish such as ginger scallions pork or chicken, and steamed rice for a simple Chinese home-cooked meal. If you have not tried this vegetable before, do look out for it as it is really delicious. I like to keep my Chinese vegetable stir-fry minimum with garlic, ginger, salt and Chinese wine. But if you like to add depth and extra deliciousness to a Chinese vegetable stir-fry, add ikan bilis powder and fried lard for incredible flavour.
The quantity of salt used in a Chinese vegetable stir-fry is usually too small for measurement – so I usually use a small pinch of salt for every 200 grams of Chinese greens and season to taste from there.
For easy cooking & eating, I trim and discard the bottom stems, leaving individual leafy greens with a short white stem for the stir fry. Feel free to leave the bottom ends intact if you prefer so.