will bok choy regrow?

Bok Choy, also called Chinese Cabbage, is a cool-season biennial veggie with crisp stalks and smooth, tender leaves. The greens taste somewhere between chard and cabbage. Do you know you can Regrow Pak Choi from Scraps? Learn about Growing Bok Choy in Water to enjoy an ample harvest of this tasty green at your home!

Before you decide to Grow Bok Choy in Water, it is important to learn if it can survive in water. While Bok Choy does not appreciate a soggy medium, it can very well survive in water. All you need to take care of is to change the water on a regular basis.

Like most Brassicas, Bok Choy can be successfully grown hydroponically. If you can provide the plant with the right care, you can also Regrow Pak Choi from Scraps.

The best time to start Growing Bok Choy in Water is in early spring for an early summer harvest and early fall for a winter harvest. However, you can grow this vegetable all year round if you can mimic its suitable temperatures.

Regrowing Pak Choi from Scraps involves similar steps as that of Growing Bok Choi in Water. So next time you consume this healthy vegetable in your dishes, make sure not to dispose the base, rather put it in a bowl of water and place it on your windowsill or kitchen garden

Once it shows new growth, you can either transfer it to a well-draining, nutrient-rich growing medium or continue Growing Bok Choi in Water.

You can harvest the first set of leaves after 30-35 days. Make sure to snip the outer foliage first, and do not cut more than 3/4th of the veggie to help it grow newer leaves.

It is important to provide sufficient sunlight when Growing Bok Choy in water as there are high chances of fungal infestation in a mushy environment. However, do remember excessive heat will scorch the edges.

The best bet is to grow it on the North or East facing window to help it enjoy a few hours of morning sunlight. In frosty climates, consider using low-intensity grow lights indoors.

The quality and temperature of the water are very crucial factors when you try to grow Bok Choy hydroponically or while regrowing Pak Choi from scraps.

Use well, rain, fresh river, or filtered water, and in case you want to use tap water, let it sit overnight. Keep in mind that the water needs to be changed every 3-5 days or earlier if it gets cloudy or discolored.

Use any liquid fertilizer and add 1-2 drops to the water. Do not feed the plant more than once a month.

The water-grown Bok Choy can look perfectly beautiful sitting in a glass bowl, jar, or saucer of warm water near a bright windowsill, kitchen, tabletop, or dining table.

While doing our research, we were amazed at how many fruits and veggies regrow from the parts we normally toss into the trash or compost, from pineapples, basil, carrots, and celery to green onions, garlic, and bok choy. All you need to reproduce food is a dish of water, a pot of soil, and a warm, sunny area of your home.

Regrowing food from leftover scraps is not only a great way to recycle and prevent food waste, but it’s also very easy to do and an excellent project for young gardeners.

The bok choy plants provide you with another harvest of fresh veggies, and the bright green leaves of the plant are a wonderful addition to the kitchen windowsill as it grows.

Regrowing bok choy (Brassica rapa) eliminates some of the waste going into your trash, and you get to reap the benefits of more fresh bok choy leaves when the plant is done growing. While growing different types of bok choy from the Chinensis group takes a little time, the process is quite easy, even for a beginner gardener.

Find out how to regrow-bok-choy and what your plant wants while growing bok choy from stalk. Discover when the leaves are ready for picking, how to harvest them, and a simple recipe for using your homegrown bok choy plant.

The first step to regrow bok choy (Brassica rapa) or to regrow cabbage from stem is to keep the white stem of the plant instead of throwing it in the garbage. However, there are other things to do to get it to regrow, and we walk you through the steps to help you grow a new bok choy plant.

When regrowing romaine lettuce or bok choy, start by cutting the base off the bok choy, or lettuce similar to how you slice the bottom of a celery bunch. Pour warm water into a cup or container and place the bok choy stalk in the water with the cut side facing upward.

Set it on a sunny windowsill and keep the water level while it sits for about a week. During this time, the veggie begins to germinate and change appearance every couple of days. The outside deteriorates and turns yellow, and the center begins to grow, turning from pale green to dark green.

After seven to ten days, when the plant begins sprouting, transplant the bok choy to a container of potting soil by burying it almost entirely with only the tips of the new green leaves pointing up. Make sure to choose a garden container with drainage holes to prevent root rot and water the bok choy right after planting.

Whether growing butterhead lettuce or bok choy this way, keep the soil moist and set it back in front of a sunny window. If you plan on keeping the pot outside on a patio after the last frost, knowing when to plant bok choy outdoors is important. Make sure the outdoor temperature is between 55 and 65°F.

After soaking the bok choy stalk in water and transplanting it into a pot of dirt, there’s still some work to do. Here is what your plant needs while growing bok choy from stalk to promote healthy growth.

Water your bok choy plant about an inch of water each week after germination and transplanting. Fertilizing isn’t necessary if you plant it in soil rich in phosphorus, potassium, and nitrogen.

Outside temperatures and bok choy companion plants are worth considering if you decide to move your plant outdoors. Bok choy is a biennial that loves growing during cool weather in the early spring or late summer in full sun to partial shade so plant it with neighboring plants that like the same thing. However, putting the plant outside before the last frost date when the weather is too cool causes bolting.

For outside gardening, keep an eye out for aphids, flea beetles, the cabbageworm, and other garden pests that destroy plants. Remove them with your hands as soon as you discover them, and apply insecticidal soap if necessary to prevent an infestation.

Bok choy is ready to harvest in two to three months, depending on the growing conditions. After the bok choy is regrown, use the entire plant or harvest it like chard by carefully removing the outer part to allow the inner plant to keep growing,

While there are many ways to prepare this veggie after regrowing bok choy, otherwise called Chinese cabbage or pak choy, one of the easiest is to saute them with herbs and seasonings. One of our favorite saute recipes is a lemon garlic bok choy. It is zesty and flavorful and only takes ten minutes to make.

Start by preparing the bok choy by removing discolored outer stalks. Rinse the bok choy under cool water to remove dirt from between the leaves. Trim off the ends, slice each bok choy in half lengthwise, and pat them dry with paper towels.

Place a skillet on medium heat and add the extra virgin olive oil, garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Stir occasionally until the oil bubbles around the garlic, and add the bok choy.

Spread the veggie in a single layer and sprinkle with a quarter teaspoon of salt. Cook for two minutes without stirring, flip them over and cook for two more minutes. Transfer the sauteed bok choy to a platter, squeeze two lemon wedges over the top and serve the veggies hot.

Can you regrow bok choy? Yes, you sure can, and it's super simple. If you're a thrifty person, regrowing bok choy is a nice alternative to throwing the leftovers in the compost bin or garbage can.

Continue reading to learn a simple and fun technique for regrowing bok choy from a cutting.

Bok choy, also known as pak choi, is a quick-growing cruciferous veggie that is a staple ingredient in Chinese cuisine.

It is easy to grow, and thrives in cool weather. You can learn more about growing bok choy at home in our complete growing guide.

If you bought a bunch from the grocery store or farmers market you can easily repurpose the leftover stalk to grow your own!

Here’s how:

First, when you remove the greens from the stalk, be sure to leave a couple of inches intact at the base. For best results, cut at the place where the stem meets the leaves.

Next, fill a bowl with at least an inch or two of water. I find that a shallow bowl two to three inches deep works well.

Submerge the stalk in the water with the leaves face up and exposed to air. You can attach toothpicks around the outside of the base to prop it up on the edge of the bowl if you wish.

I have also had success using a narrow mouthed mason jar with the leaves hanging over the edge to keep the plant floating on the surface.

Place the bowl by a warm windowsill where the plant can receive some sunlight.

Change out the water every couple of days to keep it fresh.

After a few days, you will notice the outside of the plant starting to turn yellow. Soon, the center will start growing, becoming darker green over time.

You can lift the plant out of the water and inspect the underside for signs of root growth. You will first notice white bumps which is where the roots will sprout from, and after a week or so, roots will begin to appear.

Once the center has developed new leafy growth and roots have appeared, you can choose to remove the bok choy from the water and plant it in a pot with some potting soil, or directly in the garden.

This step is not required, but doing so will give the plant the nutrients it needs to grow larger in size, and you may even be able to get two or three small harvests out of one plant.

Start by removing some of the yellowing outer stalks to improve air circulation and reduce the risk of mold. Next, plant the bok choy so that the roots and base are buried about an inch deep, with the top of the original cutting and any new growth above the soil surface.

Water generously and keep moist, but do not let the soil become waterlogged.

Now sit back and watch it grow!

Also called pak choi or horse’s ear, and regarded as a variety of Chinese cabbage as well, this veggie grows vibrant, rounded leaves borne on white or light green stems. In Cantonese, the words “pak choi” translate to “white vegetable.”

This leafy veggie was first cultivated in fifth-century China and remains a popular addition to Asian cuisine. With its juicy stalks and a peppery, spinach-like flavor, it makes an excellent ingredient in stir fries and other Asian-inspired dishes.

The inner stems are a creamy white color, and they make an appealing contrast against the deep green of the leaves. All parts of this veggie are edible, although people most commonly eat the stems and leaves.

If you’re growing bok choy but aren’t sure when or how to harvest this tasty green at home, you’ll find out everything you need to know in this guide.

Let’s get started! Here’s what we’ll dig into:

Most pak choi cultivars mature fully within 50 to 70 days after germination, but you can harvest them at 30 to 35 days for a more tender, smaller head of leaves.

A biennial that’s usually grown as an annual, pak choi is suited to USDA Hardiness Zones 2 through 11, which means nearly anybody in the US can try their hand at growing it.

To learn all the details of how to cultivate this tasty vegetable, check out our guide to growing bok choy.

In order to harvest your succulent stems and flavorful leaves, it’s important to plan ahead.

The main thing to do is note the day of germination on a calendar or in your gardening journal.

From there, you can keep track of how many days have gone by since germination, which can help you to know when to harvest your crop.

You’ll also want to keep tabs on the size of the variety you’re growing. The average size at maturity varies by cultivar, and again, note-taking helps.

Here’s an example: if you make note that the seed packet or information available online for your chosen cultivar says it grows to about 18 to 24 inches tall and 12 inches wide when it’s fully mature, you can head out to the garden with a tape measure every few days to see how your crop is getting on.

This is an excellent activity to do with the youngest gardeners in your life, especially if they’ve been helping you since the beginning of your pak choi journey.

Nothing’s more satisfying than measuring the growth of living things and knowing you had a hand in helping them thrive!

Once pak choi reaches its mature height and approximately 50 to 70 days have passed, you can harvest it.

Or, if you want to eat it as tender baby bok choy, harvest it closer to 30 or 35 days after germination, or when it’s six to 10 inches tall.

If you’re not interested in harvesting an entire head at once, you can pick several leaves at a time throughout the growing season, leaving the others behind to grow larger.

More on this in a moment!

Grab your favorite pair of gardening or kitchen scissors, make sure they’re clean, and head out into the garden – preferably in the early morning when temperatures are cool, and the heat from the sun hasn’t begun to suck the moisture out of your plants.

Find the base of a plant, gently lift the rounded base of the stems, and cut the short root stem below the base, lifting away your lovely head of homegrown Chinese cabbage.

Bring it into your kitchen, and either cook or eat the stems and leaves raw, or store them right away.

If you wait for the day to warm up before you pick, or you keep the harvested pak choi out for too long, the leaves and stems are likely to wilt, dry out, and turn rubbery.

Be sure to pick at the right time of day, and properly store anything you won’t be using straight away.

If you leave at least two inches of the base of each plant intact when you cut the leaves away, you can elect to uproot these to regrow new leaves from the base as an indoor gardening project.

If it’s not too late in the season, they may also regrow outdoors in time to harvest more.

To harvest using the cut-and-come-again method I mentioned above, snip just the outer leaves about one or two inches up from the base.

You can cut about one-third to one half of the plant at a time, harvesting the outermost leaves. New leaves will begin growing right away!

Bok choy’s readiness to regrow and provide more leaves to eat is one of my favorite things about it.

But hot weather can take its toll, causing the plants to bolt.

If your bok choy bolts, sending up a central stem topped with small yellow flowers, cut off the entire stem. This may prevent the leaves and stems from turning tough and woody, if you catch the flower stem in time.

Taste a few leaves to see if they’re still tender and flavorful. If not, it’s time to harvest the entire plant, eat what you can, and compost the rest.

If the leaves do still taste good, keep a close eye on the plant to make sure it doesn’t bolt again, and keep it as cool as possible with a shade cloth if necessary – heat makes it bolt!

Read more tips on stopping bok choy from bolting here.

Regardless of whether or not your plant is still tasty and tender once it flowers, you can also eat those bright blooms by tossing them into a salad or sandwich, for a zesty addition with a flavor reminiscent of mustard.

If you don’t plan to eat your pak choi right away, don’t wash it as soon as you bring it inside!

Cut the stems away from the base if you want to regrow your bok choy as an indoor gardening project, or simply pry the stems apart if you don’t, and store them in a zip-top bag.

Place them in your refrigerator’s vegetable drawer, where they’ll stay fresh for up to five days.

To eat, cook, or process your harvest right away, separate the stalks and clean all the nooks and crannies between them. Once you get to the center, slice the head in half to make sure you can get all of the dirt out.

You can blanch and freeze the stalks to add to recipes later, when summer’s bounty is just a memory. You can even pressure-can the stalks. Our sister site, Foodal, has 13 top tips for you to follow when you start pressure canning.

Bok choy is also super easy – and tasty! – to enjoy as a “refrigerator pickle.”

Unlike canned pickles that are shelf stable, refrigerator pickles only last for about four to six weeks in your refrigerator. But they’re an easy, quick way to hang on to your pak choi for longer, and infuse it with incredible flavor.

You’ll probably only want to use the stems for refrigerator pickling, which means you can remove the leaves to use in a salad and save the stems to make pickles.

If you love pickled leaves, though, go ahead and include those, too. Bok choy also makes a delicious kimchi.

Here’s my version of how to make refrigerator bok choy pickles, with the crunchy stems:

If you notice any mold or off flavors, toss them sooner. You can always make a new batch!

If you love dehydrated veggies, and especially dried greens, you can also dry bok choy in a food dehydrator. Check out the best dehydrators on the market in this guide from Foodal.

Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for time, temperature, and veggie prep when dehydrating.

Moisture content can vary, so it’s always a good idea to keep an eye on whatever you’re drying from the garden, and adapt as needed.

This isn’t my favorite way to eat Chinese cabbage personally, but some people adore it – and you might be one of them!

I love trying out new combinations of vegetables to roast together.

One of my latest favorites is roasting bok choy stems and leaves alongside radishes, carrots, and cauliflower for a tasty side dish that can be enjoyed with any meal.

I usually drizzle my veggies with olive oil and lemon juice, and add a sprinkle of salt and pepper, to bring out all the delicious flavors.

You can also steam Chinese cabbage, saute it, or eat it fresh in salads.

If you’re feeling adventurous, try swapping pak choi in for “regular” cabbage in recipes like this one for garlic ginger vegetarian tacos with sweet and spicy cabbage slaw from our sister site, Foodal.

The stems will provide that juicy crunch that you’re looking for.

Or, use it instead of – or along with! – kale in this Foodal recipe for kale and eggs with leeks, lemon zest, and goat cheese.

Imagine heading to your garden, harvesting some bok choy leaves and maybe some kale too, and adding them to this recipe for a hearty breakfast.

What a perfect way to start the morning!