CHINESE RECIPES FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON

Happy Holidays! I'm so excited about the holiday season thinking of all the food I'm going to eat.

If you are hosting this holiday season, shake up your dinner table and serve these delicious side dishes to impress your friends and family.

DRY POT POTATOES

gan guo tu dou

干锅土豆

SERVES 4丨 TOTAL 30 MIN 丨 CONTAINS SOY

Ingredients

• 2 to 3 new potatoes. Peel and slice the potatoes into 1/4 inches.

• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced

• 1/2 green bell pepper or Italian sweet, or 2 Jalapenos

• 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

• 1 scallion, cut into 1-inch pieces

• 6 dried red chili, coarsely cut

• 1 1/2 tbsp broad bean paste (dou ban jiang)

• 1/2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns (optional but good to have)

• 1 star anise (optional)

• 1 bay leaf

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil

• Light soy sauce

• Sugar

• Salt

Instructions

1. Bring 5 cups of water to a boil. Boil potatoes for 2 min for a crunchy texture and 3 min for a soft texture. Drain potatoes.

2. Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a wok or a large skillet. When the oil is hot, stir-fry sliced onion and green peppers for 30 sec to 1 min over high heat. Remove them from the wok.

3. Heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in the same wok over medium-low heat. Add garlic, scallions, 1 star anise (optional), and 1 bay leaf. Stir everything for 1 to 2 min until you can smell the aroma.

4. Add 1 1/2 tbsp Sichuan broad bean paste, 1/2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns, and coarsely cut chili peppers. Stir paste for 1 min to 2 min to soften the paste.

5. Add the onion, green peppers, and boiled potatoes to the wok. Stir everything over medium-high heat until the paste coats all ingredients.

6. Add 2 tsp light soy sauce, 1/2 tsp sugar, and 1/3 tsp salt. Stir well.

7. Serve hot.

DRY-FRIED GREEN BEANS SPICY SICHUAN GREEN BEANS

gan bian si ji dou 干煸四季豆

SERVES 4 丨 TOTAL 30 MIN 丨 CONTAINS SOY

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch batons

• 3 cloves garlic, crushed or chopped.

• 1 1/2 tbsp Ya Cai (pickled mustard greens, optional but good to have)

• 6 dried red chilis, coarsely cut

• 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns

• Light soy sauce

• Vegetable oil

• Sugar

• Salt

Instructions

1. Heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a wok or a large skillet. When the oil is hot, add green beans to the wok and sauté beans over high heat until they start to wrinkle on the outside, 3 to 4 min. Remove beans from the wok and set aside.

2. Add red chilis, garlic, 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns, and 1 1/2 tbsp Ya Cai. Stir-fry everything over medium heat until you can smell the fragrance.

3. Add the sautéed green beans to the wok and stir everything for another 30 sec.

4. Add 1 tsp soy sauce, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/3 tsp sugar. Stir everything a few more times.

5. Remove from heat and serve.

BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH CHINESE CURED PORK BELLY

I featured this dish a few weeks ago. Full recipe link here.