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Stir-Fried Rice Cakes with Bok Choy and Snow Peas

By Andrea Rivera Wawrzyn

Published on February 17, 2023

Time

35 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

What Kids Are Saying

“If you like spicy, this is a good recipe.” —Emmett, recipe tester, age 9

Stir-Fried Rice Cakes with Bok Choy and Snow Peas

Ingredients

3 tablespoons soy sauce 1 tablespoon sugar 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce ½–1 teaspoon gochujang paste4 heads baby bok choy (4 ounces each)1 tablespoon vegetable oil 3 scallions, root ends trimmed and scallions cut into 1-inch pieces3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced1 pound Korean rice cakes (sliced or tube-shaped) ⅓ cup water 4 ounces snow peas, strings removed and cut in half crosswise (the short way)

Before You Begin

If using frozen Korean rice cakes, be sure to defrost them before cooking. You can find rice cakes and gochujang, a spicy Korean chile paste, in the Korean section of many supermarkets or in Korean markets. If you like things spicy, use the full amount of gochujang.

Instructions

  1. In small bowl, whisk soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, hoisin, and gochujang until combined. Set aside.
  2. Cut, wash, and chop bok choy following photo, “Step-by-Step: How to Prep Baby Bok Choy.”
  3. Heat vegetable oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering, about 2 minutes (oil should be hot but not smoking).
  4. Add scallions to skillet and cook, stirring occasionally with wooden spoon, until scallions are just beginning to brown, about 2 minutes.
  5. Add garlic to skillet and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in rice cakes, separating any that are stuck together, and bok choy. Add water and cover with lid. Cook, covered, until bok choy is bright green and liquid has begun to evaporate, about 3 minutes.
  6. Use oven mitts to remove lid. Add soy sauce mixture and snow peas to skillet and stir until well combined. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off heat. Serve.
Stir-Fried Rice Cakes with Bok Choy and Snow Peas
Photography by Kevin White. Styling by Ashley Moore.

Stir-Fried Rice Cakes with Bok Choy and Snow Peas

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Time

35 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

What Kids Are Saying

“If you like spicy, this is a good recipe.” —Emmett, recipe tester, age 9

Ingredients

3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
½–1 teaspoon gochujang paste
4 heads baby bok choy (4 ounces each)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 scallions, root ends trimmed and scallions cut into 1-inch pieces
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 pound Korean rice cakes (sliced or tube-shaped)
⅓ cup water
4 ounces snow peas, strings removed and cut in half crosswise (the short way)

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
½–1 teaspoon gochujang paste
4 heads baby bok choy (4 ounces each)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 scallions, root ends trimmed and scallions cut into 1-inch pieces
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 pound Korean rice cakes (sliced or tube-shaped)
⅓ cup water
4 ounces snow peas, strings removed and cut in half crosswise (the short way)

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
½–1 teaspoon gochujang paste
4 heads baby bok choy (4 ounces each)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 scallions, root ends trimmed and scallions cut into 1-inch pieces
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 pound Korean rice cakes (sliced or tube-shaped)
⅓ cup water
4 ounces snow peas, strings removed and cut in half crosswise (the short way)

Test Kitchen Techniques

Why This Recipe Works

This weeknight, family-friendly stir-fry is so simple, even kid chefs can help make dinner! It stars chewy Korean rice cakes, baby bok choy, snow peas, and a slightly spicy sauce thanks to a bit of gochujang (a Korean chile paste). This recipe provides an opportunity for kids to practice mincing garlic cloves. First, they can crush each clove using the flat bottom of a measuring cup and remove the papery skins. To mince, they should place one hand on the handle of their chef’s knife and rest the fingers of their other hand on top of the blade. Using a rocking motion, they should chop the garlic repeatedly into very small pieces, pivoting the knife as they chop and stopping to carefully wipe garlic from the blade as needed. Kids might notice that, the more they chop, the stronger the garlic’s smell becomes. That’s because when garlic’s tiny cell walls are broken, a chemical reaction occurs that produces a compound called allicin, which creates garlic’s signature smell. The more they chop, the more allicin that’s produced! (In contrast, a whole clove of garlic won’t have an odor, because its cells are all intact.)

Before You Begin

If using frozen Korean rice cakes, be sure to defrost them before cooking. You can find rice cakes and gochujang, a spicy Korean chile paste, in the Korean section of many supermarkets or in Korean markets. If you like things spicy, use the full amount of gochujang.

Instructions

  1. In small bowl, whisk soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, hoisin, and gochujang until combined. Set aside.
  2. Cut, wash, and chop bok choy following photo, “Step-by-Step: How to Prep Baby Bok Choy.”
  3. Heat vegetable oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering, about 2 minutes (oil should be hot but not smoking).
  4. Add scallions to skillet and cook, stirring occasionally with wooden spoon, until scallions are just beginning to brown, about 2 minutes.
  5. Add garlic to skillet and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in rice cakes, separating any that are stuck together, and bok choy. Add water and cover with lid. Cook, covered, until bok choy is bright green and liquid has begun to evaporate, about 3 minutes.
  6. Use oven mitts to remove lid. Add soy sauce mixture and snow peas to skillet and stir until well combined. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off heat. Serve.

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