China · Home-style
Cold-Dressed Celtuce
Salting and quick blanching turn celtuce stem crunchy and mild, finished with hot oil poured over ginger, garlic and chili. A cool, crisp little side dish.
Celtuce is grown for its stem rather than its leaf, and in summer households eat it partly for the cooling effect of all that water in the flesh. Salting first draws off excess moisture, which is what makes the stem snap instead of bending. Chilling the finished dish before serving makes it a summer staple on the balcony tables of northern cities.
Ingredients
- celtuce stem1 pieces
- daikon radish0.3 pieces
- bird's eye chili2 pieces
- ginger1 pieces
- salt5 g
- cooking oil25 ml
Directions
- 1
Peel the celtuce and cut it into small batons. Cut the radish into batons too, put them in a large bowl, add the salt, mix well and leave for 10 minutes.
- 2
Rinse the salted celtuce once or twice under water.
- 3
Bring a pot of water to the boil, add the celtuce and boil for 1 minute, then lift out, drain well and return to the large bowl.
- 4
Heat oil in a pan, add the ginger slices, chopped garlic and bird's eye chili and fry for 30 to 45 seconds, then pour over the celtuce.
- 5
Toss thoroughly and serve.
Source: HowToCook · WorldBite adaptation · Unlicense source text; bilingual recipe adapted by WorldBite.