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Add some bright colour to your diet with this healthy baby bok choy salad made with oranges and Asian pears.
Have you tried raw baby bok choy? I usually add it to a stir-fry, but I discovered that it’s delicious raw too. This crisp, crunchy, leafy Chinese cabbage has stellar nutrient qualities too. It’s high in a host of nutrients, including essential vitamins and minerals, anti-oxidants, omega-3’s and zinc. It’s more tender than kale and offers a healthier alternative to lettuce in salads.
Here on the West Coast, we rarely have to complain about bitterly cold mornings, blizzards and snow drifts, or ice on the inside of our windows. We watch newscasts about plunging temperatures in the eastern US and Canada and thank our lucky stars that we live where we do. No matter where we live, the weather affects us all, and while it’s mild here, it can also be gray.
Day after day. Drizzly rain, cloud cover, more drizzle, and fog, especially where I live close to the ocean. We all comment when the sun peeks through, because it’s a Big Deal.
I crave colour at this time of year. I bring flowers into my home, choose bright shirts and sweaters from my closet, and make meals like this baby bok choy salad that fill my plate with a rainbow of cheerful colours. But this salad adds much more than just colour and nutrition. The ginger-orange dressing adds another dimension and it must be tasted to be believed! It’s a perfect match for any Asian-inspired salad you might make and once you try it, you’ll be hooked.
So, consider doing what I did. I cleaned out the crisper drawer in my fridge, choosing vegetables and fruits that contrasted in flavour and texture, like baby bok choy and red pepper, green and red onion, a sweet navel orange and one of those fabulous crispy Asian pears that are available now. Tossed with this Asian ginger-orange vinaigrette, it made a perfect accompaniment to this Crock-Pot Sticky Chicken. While Spring is still weeks away, this baby bok choy salad on your table might make it seem a little closer!
- 2 cups baby choy, chopped into ribbons
- 1 red pepper, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup green onions, sliced
- 1/4 cup red onion, finely diced
- 1 large navel orange, sectioned
- 1 apple pear, peeled, cored and finely sliced
- 1 tsp minced shallots
- 1 tsp orange zest
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 tsp finely grated ginger
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tsp finely chopped cilantro
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- freshly ground pepper, to taste
- sea salt, to taste
- Put all ingredients in a large serving bowl, If not serving immediately, add the Asian pear just before serving to prevent browning.
- Toss with dressing and serve.
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