China · Cantonese
Lettuce in Oyster Sauce
Whole leaves of lettuce blanched just until bright, then drenched in a hot garlic and oyster sauce. Crisp, savory and faintly sweet.
Lettuce in oyster sauce is one of the most ordered vegetable dishes in both Cantonese and Sichuan restaurants, largely because it arrives faster than anything else on the menu. Blanching each leaf for the same few seconds is what keeps the outer leaves from going limp while the ribs stay crunchy. The sauce is boiled and poured over rather than reduced onto the leaves, which would water them down.
Ingredients
- lettuce1 pieces
- oyster sauce8 ml
- garlic cloves5 pieces
- light soy sauce6 ml
- salt0.5 g
- sugar1 g
- cooking oil8 ml
Directions
- 1
Wash the lettuce and discard any damaged outer leaves.
- 2
Heat the wok and add 1 L of cold water, then 2 to 3 ml of oil and 0.5 g of salt, and wait for it to boil.
- 3
Once it boils, add the lettuce and blanch every single leaf for 10 seconds.
- 4
Lift out the lettuce, drain it well and arrange it on a plate.
- 5
Mix the sauce: light soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt, sugar and 10 to 15 ml of cold water in a bowl until even.
- 6
Return to the heat, heat the wok, add 5 to 8 ml of oil and, once hot, add the crushed garlic.
- 7
When the garlic smells fragrant, pour in the mixed sauce and bring it to a boil, then turn off the heat at once.
- 8
Spoon the sauce evenly over the lettuce.
Source: HowToCook · WorldBite adaptation · Unlicense source text; bilingual recipe adapted by WorldBite.