Let’s get you growing Joi Choi! This is the Pak Choi (aka Bak Choy) everyone can (and should) grow.

Close up of Joi Choi pak choi plant growing in garden

There are few veggies that bring me as much JOI in the garden and on my plate as this veggie, so I’m declaring myself a founding member of the Joi Choi Fan Club! She’s as delicious as she is beautiful!

This has consistently been one of the easiest veggies to grow. It is ready also one of the fastest maturing early spring veggies, ready to harvest within 30 days of transplanting in all but the coldest spring weather. This means I can usually get at least three successions of Joi Choi in each season in my zone 4 gardens.

Read more about Succession Planting HERE

It is way more heat tolerant than other Pak Choi I’ve tried. Meaning it keeps growing a lot longer, and therefore bigger before it bolts. I mean look at those Thick stalks! All that stem equals weights of close to 2 lbs. per average plant if harvested all at once. Last fall I harvested a single Joi Choi that was over 4 lbs heavy and still tender and crisp in October!

freshly harvested pak choi plant

When growing Joi Choi forms a 12-15″ tall, broad, heavy plant with dark green leaves pure white stalks. Plants perfer a wide spacing of at least 1 foot. I plant three total across my 4′ wide beds.

I buy my seeds from Johnny’s and have had great germination rates and consistent harvests for years now.

Harvesting Joi Choi

I often just harvest the outer stems, treating this as a cut and come again veggie is possible because it can hold in the garden better than most other varieties of Pak choi. The leaves make great ‘wraps’ for lettuce wrapped meals.

Pak Choi, carrots and garlics scapes on cutting board ready for recipe

The leaves do tend to be a little more bitter than most folks enjoy, so they do need a little doctoring, but adding chopped stalks and leaves to stir fry etc. is a great way to use them and gain the nutritional benefits too!

The stems are so crisp, they even stand up to being sliced on a mandolin! I will shred raw like a coleslaw, chop for stir fry, or just add a little garlic (or some garlic scapes) for a simple side dish. I can succession sow these at least three times a year, and they are gorgeous in the garden as well. They also hold well in the fall garden, but do need protection if we drop down to the 30’s.

Read more on Garlic Scapes HERE

The following recipe is what I do when I end up harvesting a few at a time, usually when they start to bolt at the end of June.

I’m always so busy at this time of year so I crafted this super simple ferment from a zucchini and carrot ferment recipe from Stephanie at Minnesota From Scratch (my Small-Scale Homesteading Coauthor) I’d been making and boom- the flavor is something I look forward to each year!

This recipe uses an old school mandolin to slice the Joi Choi. It is a slow process but I like the crisp edges to gives better then what a food processor does. But you do you! Also, I make this Kimchi Style Kraut with green cabbage that I love!

Joi Choi Fermented Slaw Recipe

  • 1.75 lbs sliced stalks (max 1/4 green leaves)
  • .5 lbs medium carrots- shredded
  • .25 lbs garlic scapes minced (or diced in food processor) (can sub regular garlic for scapes)
  • 1 Tbsp Kosher Salt (iodine free, fine grain)

Prep all veggies by washing and shredding
Mix together with salt, massaging to make a brine
Pack into sterilized jar
Submerge veggies under brine, weighing down a with jar weight
Add lid of choice- either burpless or check daily

Depending on temperature where you’re fermenting, I leave my jar out to ferment for roughly 4-6 days. Warmer temps make for a faster ferment. Make sure to check daily, both to burp extra gasses and to check for ‘floaties’ these are the little bits and pieces that if on the surface can attract bad bacteria instead of the good kind to your fermented foods.

Here are some basics of fermentation from Harvard Medical School.

I love this on eggs both scrambled and hard boiled, mixed into stir fry, even on Asian spiced fish with rice. So versatile, and a fun way to savor two start of summer flavors together- Garlic Scapes and Joi Choi!

Have I tempted you to try growing Joi Choi now too?

Dig In,
Michelle