The Shanghai Style Vegetable Rice

The Shanghai Style Vegetable Rice originally was just the dish for low paid male workers around the Shanghai area. Wife at home used the left over Pak Choi, add some oil and combined with the rice, to make the traditional vegetable rice for their hard working husband.


Gradually, this dish is widely spread and become one of the signature dish in Shanghai Cuisine. The dish is very simple and delicious. You can also use your own creativity to make the one and only Shanghai Vegetable Rice.
Ingredients (4 Servings)

800g "Pak Choi" (or some may call "Bak Coy"), cut into 2cm length
3 cups of uncooked rice
4 Chinese Sausage (or you may use Bacon instead)
2 Cloves of garlic, finely chopped
800ml of stock
Salt
Dried small shrimp
Oil

Steps:

1. Cut the Pak Choi and bacon. Soak the dried small shrimp for about 10 minutes and leak dry. Add oil, garlic, bacon, and dried shrimp into the cast iron casserole and saute for about 2 minutes. 



2. Add the Pak Choi into the casserole and cook until the stem is mildly soft. Season with salt.



3. Add the washed rice and stock into the casserole. Bring to boil with small heat and cover the lid for 15 minutes.








4. Uncover the lid after 15 minutes and check whether the stock is almost reduced. If it is, turn off the heat and cover the lid, using the temperature within the cast iron casserole to cook the rice.



5. Uncover when 20 minutes pass and it's ready to serve.