The use of boiling in Chinese cooking can be in many ways. There is boiling only, also stir fry or deep fry, and then boil. Sometimes it is an overlap of stir frying and boiling, and also low heat boiling.
Here are some pointers in how to boil Chinese dishes most effectively.

Preparation
As in cooking most any cultural dishes, preparation is very important. It is even more so in Chinese cooking. Make sure if the ingredients need to be deep fried, stir fried, or what not, that they are done ahead of time. If they are boiled too long, they will be too mushy, sometimes get mixed up with the liquid, and almost certainly ruins the taste and presentation of the dish.

Carefully monitor the heat
When boiling at first, use high heat. Once the liquid begins to boil, turn the heat down to low, and remove the suds/residue floating on top.

Carefully add the condiments
During the process of boiling, the taste of the dish will increase as time goes on. Thus, it's ok if it tastes bland at the beginning. Once the dish is ready, you can add more to taste, depending on your liking.