Chap Chye is an Asian vegetable stew that uses cabbage or Chinese cabbage (napa cabbage), dried lily flowers, mushrooms, and glass noodles.
Chap Chye tastes better the next day.



Chinese New Year celebrations were celebrated for 15 days.
Visiting relatives and friends, kids and youngsters (singles) happily going round, collecting red packets containing money.

When it comes to celebrating any festivals, we tend to overeat all the time. Asian hospitality is at its max.
Agree?

Calling prior to visiting is not a must in our culture (but it's nice if everyone does call sometimes). We can visit an uncle or auntie at any time, and we would be served with food, tit-bits, and drinks, or even invited to join them for lunch if they are about to sit down for one.

Yesterday, 19th February 2019, was the last day of celebration.
Life gets back to routine.

And it's time to have simple food, preferably less meat ;P.

Chap Chye or mixed vegetable stew sounds like a perfect dish to start with our simple eating.

What is Chap Chye | Asian Mixed vegetables Stew?

A mixed vegetable side dish (or main dish) consists of cabbage, napa cabbage, dried lily flower, dried beancurd (foo chuk), Chinese mushrooms, and glass noodles.

Fermented beancurd is used to make Chap Chye | Asian Mixed vegetables Stew.

Ingredients to make a good Chap Chye | Asian Mixed vegetables Stew

1. Cloves of garlic, the more the merrier.
Just wash and saute whole garlic.



2. Dried lily flowers

Knot dried lily flower for that extra crunch (taste and texture)


3. Cabbage
Either ordinary cabbage or Chinese cabbage (napa cabbage/ wong bok) or both can be used to make chap chye.


4. Fermented beancurd
The original recipe uses fermented beancurd.
However, I substitute fermented beancurd with miso paste.




5. Gingko nuts
See my notes on ginkgo nut below.



6. Glass Noodles
Glass noodles, or known as cellophane noodles, are gluten-free. They are made of mung bean starch.
They absorb water well; hence, you may have to add water when cooking chap chye.
This is a versatile noodle. I used this for my Oxtail Soup or my Thai noodle salad.



A bowl of wonderful Chap Chye | Asian Mixed vegetables Stew

About Gingko nuts

Just a little note on gingko nuts.

Ginkgo nuts come from a native Chinese plant known as the ginkgo biloba tree. Both nuts and leaves are believed to have some medicinal value.

Best to avoid eating raw gingko nuts as they can be toxic if eaten in large quantities.

My best advice is just buy the store-bought cooked gingko nuts from your asian grocer.

And another point to note:  take out the teeny weeny green bits in the middle of the gingko nuts (photo below).

Slice the gingko nuts in halved and take out the "heart" with a toothpick.

Those green bits are super BITTER!!!

Best way to enjoy Chap Chye | Asian Mixed vegetables Stew

Chap Chye | Asian Mixed vegetables Stew can be served immediately with steamed rice, but honestly, Chap Chye | Asian Mixed vegetables Stew tastes better the next day.

By leaving it overnight in the fridge, it enhances flavours further.

Chap Chye | Asian Mixed vegetables Stew can be kept in an airtight container for at least 3 days in the fridge.

Note: I have frozen a portion of Chap Chye, and we shall see about the taste. I will update here.

Other Asian salads on this blog

Prosperity Toss Salad
Banana flower salad
Rice herb salad
Thai leaf salad
Thai salad with peanut dressing

Korean Japchae