The bright green stir-fry of Chinese restaurants. Other vegetables you can prepare this way: if you can’t find gai lan, use broccoli raab or even collards or kale; broccoli or cauliflower will work too.

　　

Ingredients

makes 4 servings

　　1 1/2 pounds gai lan

　　2 tablespoons peanut oil

　　1 tablespoon minced garlic, optional

　　1/4 cup oyster sauce

　　

Step 1

Separate the leaves and stems of the gai lan; cut the stems into 2-inch lengths.

　　

Step 2

Put the peanut oil in a large skillet or wok and turn the heat to high. Add the leaves of the greens and toss until they wilt, about 3 minutes; put on a platter. Add the stems, the garlic if you’re using it, and about 1/4 cup water. Toss until the stems are crisp-tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove them and put on top of the greens. Top with oyster sauce and serve.

　　The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.