Five-Spice Diced Vegetables in Endive Leaves with Plum Sauce

Five-Spice Diced Vegetables in Endive Leaves with Plum Sauce

from Vegetarian Appetizers by Paulette Mitchell

PLUM SAUCE:

1/4 cup bottled Chinese plum sauce
1 tablespoon water, or as needed

FIVE-SPICE DICED VEGETABLES:

3 ribs bok choy
20 endive leaves, ends trimmed
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro, or 2 teaspoons minced fresh mint, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder (see Tips)
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
Ground white pepper to taste
1 tablespoon roasted-peanut oil (see Tips) or canola oil
2 carrots, cut into 1/4-inch dice (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup diced yellow bell pepper
2 green onions (white and green parts), finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced, or 1 teaspoon prepared minced garlic

TO COMPLETE THE RECIPE:

Toasted sesame seeds for garnish

The licorice tones of Chinese five-spice powder give this appetizer character. Vary the vegetables to include your favorites or to use up odds and ends. (You'll need a total of about 4 Cups of diced vegetables.) For larger servings, fill 6 baby romaine or radicchio leaves or Filo Cups with heaping quarter-cupfuls of the vegetables.

To make the sauce: Pour the bottled plum sauce into a small bowl. Stir in water as needed until the sauce is a maple-syrup consistency. Set aside.

cut the green tops of the bok choy ribs into fine shreds ; cut the white ribs into 1/2-inch dice. Set aside.

arrange the endive leaves on a platter. Stir together the lime juice, soy sauce, cilantro or mint, five-spice powder, red pepper flakes, and white pepper in a small bowl. Set aside.

heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bok choy, carrots, bell peppers, green onions, and garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, until crisp-tender, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in the lime juice mixture. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

serve the vegetables warm or let them come to room temperature. Fill each endive leaf with a heaping tablespoon of the vegetable mixture, drizzle with about 1 teaspoon of the plum sauce, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Provide plates for your guests.

Tips: Five-spice powder, sometimes called five-fragrance powder, is a sweet and pungent mixture of ground fennel, star anise, ginger, licorice root, cinnamon, and cloves. A licorice flavor predominates. It is available in Asian markets and most supermarkets.

Roasted-peanut oil, available in many supermarkets, is more aromatic and flavorful than other peanut oils because it is made from peanuts that are dryroasted prior to pressing.

ADVANCE PREPARATION: The vegetables can be chopped up to 1 day in advance; put in zip-top plastic bags and refrigerate. Cook the vegetables just before serving.

Makes 20 (vegan recipe)

This and many other wonderful recipes may be found in Paulette Mitchell's
Vegetarian Apppetizers from Chronicle Books