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Hot and sour lotus root
Suan la ou ding 酸辣藕丁: crunchy diced lotus root with vinegar, chilli and garlic
Hubei is lotus country, its lakes around Wuhan full of the plant, and Hubei and Sichuan cooks dice the crisp root and flash-fry it with chilli and vinegar for a side dish that crunches like water chestnut. It is sour first, then hot, then garlicky, and it wakes up a table of rich braises in a Wuhan home or a Chengdu fly restaurant. Serve it hot or at room temperature with rice. The common mistake is cooking the lotus too long so it turns starchy and dull; it needs only a few minutes. Chef's tip: drop the cut pieces straight into water with a splash of vinegar, which stops them turning grey and rinses off surface starch so they stay crisp.
- Total time
- 18 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 3
Ingredients
- 14 oz fresh lotus rootpeeled
- 4 tbsp rice vinegar1 tbsp for the soaking water
- 2 tbsp neutral oil
- 6 dried red chilliessnipped
- 2 pickled red chillies (optional)chopped
- 4 cloves garlicfinely chopped
- 2 spring onionschopped
For seasoning
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
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What you'll need
Fresh ingredients (3)
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Cut 14 oz fresh lotus root into 1.5 cm dice and drop it into a bowl of cold water mixed with 1 tablespoon of 1 tbsp rice vinegar. Leave for 5 minutes, then drain well.
Step 2: Blanch the lotus in boiling water until just bright and still very crunchy, then drain.
1 minStep 3: Heat 2 tbsp neutral oil in a wok over a medium heat. Fry 6 dried red chillies, 2 pickled red chillies if using, and 4 cloves garlic until fragrant and the chillies darken.
1 minStep 5: Pour the rest of 3 tbsp rice vinegar around the edge of the wok, add 1 tsp light soy sauce and 2 spring onions and toss for 30 seconds. Taste: it should be clearly sour. Serve hot or at room temperature.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 150 kcal
- Protein
- 3 g
- Carbs
- 24 g
- Fat
- 6 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does hot and sour lotus root take?
- About 18 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 8 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 3 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it very spicy?
- It has some heat. Use less chilli for a milder version, or more if you like it hot.
- What can I use instead of rice vinegar?
- Cider vinegar with a pinch of sugar, same amount.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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