Stir-fried Napa Cabbage with Hot & Sour Sauce (酸辣白菜)
Pungent, flavourful in taste and crunchy in texture, stir-fried Napa cabbage with hot & sour sauce is delectable, yet very simple to cook.
Servings: 2
Ingredients
- 1 small Napa cabbage (Chinese cabbage) about 450 g/1 lbs
For the sauce
- 1½ tablespoon black rice vinegar see note 1
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon dark soy sauce optional
- 1 tablespoon tapioca starch, or cornstarch
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch sugar
- 1 tablespoon water
For stir-frying
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 6 dried chilies, cut in sections or to taste, see note 2
- 1 stalk scallions, finely chopped
Instructions
Prepare the cabbage
- Separate the leaves of the Napa cabbage. Lay one leaf flat on the chopping board. Cut it into bite-sized pieces at a 30-degree angle (please refer to the image in the post above). Repeat to finish the rest.
Mix the sauce
- In a small bowl, mix black rice vinegar, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, starch, salt, sugar and water. Set aside.
Stir-fry the dish
- Heat up a wok over high heat until it starts to smoke. Pour in oil then add garlic and dried chilies. Fry until fragrant (do not burn).
- Put in the cabbage. Stir fry until the green leafy part starts to wilt but the white part remains crunchy.
- Give the sauce a good stir then pour into the wok. Add scallions. Mix well. Remove from the heat once the sauce thickens. Serve immediately.
Notes
1. There isn’t, unfortunately, a substitute for Chinese black rice vinegar. To achieve the best taste for this recipe, I recommend you use Zhenjiang (Chinkiang) vinegar/镇江香醋, a reputable variety widely available in Chinese stores.
2. Please free feel to adjust the number of dried chilies based on their heat level and your tolerance. The finished dish should have a nice kick of spice but not so hot that it overpowers other flavours. If you don’t have dried chilies at hand, use fresh chili to substitute.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 136kcal
