Should I wash the Chinese cabbage or just tear off the top layer?

Contrary to various disputes, it is necessary to wash Chinese cabbage before eating - but you need to know how and when.

Where do different opinions come from?

The fact is that Peking cabbage, like white cabbage, is multi-layered, and the outer leaves protect the inner ones. Therefore, it seems logical to simply tear off the outer coverings. However, if you look carefully, Peking leaves have very curly leaves, and they do not fit tightly to each other - this means that at least the top of the vegetable is freely overgrown with dust during ripening.

It follows from this: You need to wash it thoroughly under running water or by lowering the entire head of cabbage into a basin. This decision categorically did not suit the cooks.

Judge for yourself: if you pour plenty of water into many folds and loosely pressed leaves. Will all the water then be able to drain? No. A noticeable amount of it will go into the dish. Therefore, purity-en.htgetrid.com magazine does not recommend washing whole Chinese cabbage for salad.

Important
You cannot wash the entire head of cabbage if part of it remains for storage: water in the folds provokes rotting of the vegetable, it goes rotten and becomes a haven for bacteria.

Outputs and solutions

The housewife found two solutions:

1. If you don’t trust a clean vegetable, you need to take it apart into leaves and wash each one separately or two at a time and put it on a towel to dry it off.
2. Wash by spreading the crown well and using boiled water. Then turn the head of cabbage upside down and lightly tap with your palm to shake out the moisture without causing splashes.

The first method is especially convenient if you take Chinese cabbage in parts for a salad: the leaves are washed for cooking, and the main head is sent back to the “fresh zone” section.

Advice
Any vegetables, including bok choy, keep their freshness best in a glass container with a lid.

Before cooking, if the cabbage is gone entirely, wash it however you like, even just under the tap. When cooking or stewing, a few drops of raw water will mix with what is already poured into the pan and will not play a role. If the cabbage is going to be fried or baked, then you should wash the leaves one at a time and dry them - otherwise the vegetable will stew.

Cooks advise removing the top leaves and stalks, like those of cabbage, as the main layer of dust and pesticides settles on them.

Beijing or Chinese cabbage is soft in taste, crispy and juicy, and also looks impressive in a salad. Pour boiling water over or rinse under the tap only that part of the head of cabbage that you will definitely use in cooking. Wrap the rest in parchment so that it breathes but does not lose moisture. And then you can safely enjoy this delicious vegetable for more than one day.