Getting your family to eat more vegetables just became incredibly easy with this popular side dish from the Panda Express. This nutritious side dish transforms humble broccoli, kale, and cabbage into an irresistible stir-fry that even picky eaters will request seconds of. The secret lies in the light garlic sauce that enhances the natural flavors without overwhelming them, plus the quick blanching technique that keeps vegetables vibrant and crisp-tender.
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Table of Contents
Why This Recipe Works
This recipe uses a two-step cooking process that maximizes both nutrition and flavor. Blanching the vegetables first preserves their vibrant colors and nutrients while ensuring even cooking. The light cornstarch-thickened sauce coats each piece perfectly without making the dish heavy or greasy. The result is restaurant-quality vegetables that maintain their crisp texture and fresh taste.
Ingredients
For the Sauce
- Water – Forms the base of the light, flavorful sauce
- Vegetable base or bouillon – Adds savory depth without overpowering the vegetables
- Cornstarch – Creates the perfect light coating that clings to vegetables
For the Stir-Fry
- Broccoli florets – Provide classic cruciferous nutrition and satisfying texture
- Fresh kale – Adds earthy flavor and exceptional nutritional value
- Green cabbage – Contributes sweetness and substantial bite
- Fresh garlic – Creates an aromatic foundation for the entire dish
- Salt – Enhances natural vegetable flavors
- Vegetable oil – Enables proper stir-frying technique
Ingredient Substitutions
Go ahead and experiment with the stock in the sauce. Instead of a base or bouillon cube, you can use a premade, homemade, or canned vegetable stock. If you don’t care about keeping the recipe vegetarian-friendly, you can use chicken broth or pork stock as well for a fuller, more savory flavor.
In this Super Greens Panda Express recipe, you’re not locked into using broccoli, kale, and green cabbage. Any hearty veggies will do. Broccoli rabe, bok choy, Swiss chard, and water spinach are all excellent choices as well.
How to this Panda Express Super Greens Copycat Recipe
The two components of this dish are the sauce and the vegetables. Make the sauce first, so it will have time to rest before using it.
To make the sauce:
- Heat the water in a small saucepan over medium heat until simmering.
- Add the vegetable base or bouillon cube and whisk vigorously to dissolve.
- Sprinkle in the cornstarch and constantly whisk to avoid lumps. The sauce needs to simmer for at least a minute or two to cook out the raw cornstarch flavor.
To complete the recipe:
- Rinse the vegetables and dry them thoroughly.
- Cut the vegetables into bite-sized pieces. Remember, the green cabbage will shrink after cooking, so cut it into larger pieces.
- Bring a large stockpot with 2/3 full of water to a boil over high heat and add a pinch of salt.
- Cook the broccoli in the water until the florets turn bright green.
- Then add the cabbage and kale and cook for a few seconds.
- Strain the vegetables and run them under cold water to stop them from carry-over cooking.
- Heat a large pan or wok over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add the vegetable oil and quickly saute the garlic until fragrant.
- Add the blanched vegetables and sauce to the pan and toss well.
- Once the sauce thickens, remove the pan from the heat and serve the vegetables immediately.
Recipe Variations
You can play fast and loose with the sauce in this recipe. Just about any bottled stir-fry sauce will be great. If you like a bit of heat, use Szechuan-style sauce for pure spice or Thai-style sweet chili sauce for something a little more balanced.
Try sautéing some thinly sliced beef, chicken, shrimp, or tofu and adding to the vegetables for additional protein and flavor.
How to Serve Panda Express Super Greens
Plate the vegetables over rice or quinoa. You can also mix the veggies with Asian noodles.
What Goes Well With Super Greens?
This recipe is natural alongside any Chinese main course, but it works equally well when you serve it with a roasted pork tenderloin or baked salmon.
Storage & Reheating Instructions for Leftovers
- Refrigerator Storage: Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator
- Sauce Storage: Keep leftover sauce separately for up to 1 week, stirring well before use
- Freezing: Freeze in freezer bags laid flat for up to 3 months. Note that the texture will be softer after freezing
- Reheating Method: Thaw completely if frozen, then reheat in a hot pan with a splash of water, stirring constantly until warmed through
More Panda Express Copycat Recipes
- Cream Cheese Rangoon
- Panda Express Broccoli Beef
- Panda Express Chow Mein
- Panda Express Firecracker Chicken
Favorite Chinese Recipes
- Beef Chow Fun
- Chinese Hot Mustard
- Chinese Spare Ribs
- Chinese Sweet and Sour Sauce
- Egg Drop Soup
- Egg Foo Young Recipe
- Seafood Bake
- Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Wonton Strips
Check out more of my easy vegetable side dish recipes and the best Chinese food recipes here on CopyKat!
Panda Express Super Greens (Healthy Copycat)
Ingredients
Super Greens Sauce
- 1¼ cups water
- 2 teaspoons vegetable base or 1 cube of vegetable bouillon
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
Vegetables
- 1 pound broccoli florets
- ½ pound kale
- ¾ pound green cabbage
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Instructions
Super Greens Sauce
- Prepare the sauce before you begin to cook the vegetables.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine water, vegetable base, and cornstarch. Whisk vigorously until the mixture is well-blended.
Vegetables
- Wash broccoli florets, and break them into bite-sized pieces.
- Wash kale and chop leaves into bite-sized pieces.
- Wash green cabbage and cut it into large slices.
- Fill a gallon-sized pot ¾ full of water and add 2 teaspoons of salt. Bring the salted water to a boil.
- Add broccoli to the boiling water. Cook until the broccoli turns bright green.
- Add the kale and cabbage. Cook for about 15 seconds.
- Remove the pot from the heat and drain the vegetables.
- Heat a wok or large skillet to medium-high heat.
- Add vegetable oil.
- Add minced garlic and cook for about 10 to 15 seconds. The garlic should become fragrant.
- Add the sauce and cook until it thickens.
- Add drained vegetables and stir until the vegetables are coated with sauce.
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