Sichuan Dry-Fried Green Beans

I first attempted making Sichuan dry-fried green beans 5 years ago while living in Beijing. Night after night I would have these delicious crispy green beans at Sichuan restaurants alongside dishes like mapo tofu and kung pao chicken, and finally decided I needed to try making them on my own. The results of my first experiments were less than impressive, to put it mildly. Then help came from a fellow blogger back home in NY.

Years later, I still make dry-fried green beans with the same time-tested method, varying the ingredients ever so slightly. Here is a revised all-vegetarian recipe featured in my new cookbook.

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Dried-fried green beans is one of my favorite side dishes to order in Sichuan restaurants. In contrast to crisp haricot verts or mushy microwaved diner-style beans, Sichuan-style green beans are blistered and well-cooked without being bland. With Sichuan peppercorns and dried chillis adding spice and smokiness to the flavor profile, this dish becomes positively addictive.

However, no matter how many times I tried to recreate the dish at home, I ended up either burning the green beans before they got cooked, or dumping some water in order to save the beans, the latter which defeats the purpose of dry-frying. For help, I finally emailed Kian from Red Cook. He said that his method is using a fair amount of oil and constantly stirring the beans to get them cooked without burning. Almost like deep-frying. No wonder the green beans in restaurants taste so good.

Some recipes I found also eschew the dried red chills and Sichuan peppercorn, but I find the extra spice adds a needed smoky dimension to the final dish.

Remember to dry your green beans well before cooking. Nothing ruins an appetite like splotchy painful burn marks on your arms from splattering oil.

The 5 or 6 minutes of shallow-frying are important: they allow the green beans to develop not only the characteristic wrinkled and blistery surface, but also a deep, caramelized flavor.

This dry-frying technique lends itself to so many ways to cook green beans. I’m thinking porcini mushrooms and rosemary for an Italian-style crispy green bean dish in the future.

Author: Appetite for China (appetiteforchina.com)¾ pound green beans¼ cup peanut or vegetable oil5 or 6 dried red chilies¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper1 tablespoon minced garlic1 teaspoon minced or grated fresh ginger3 scallions, white parts only, thinly sliced4 ounces fresh shiitake or cremini mushrooms, finely chopped1½ teaspoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry1½ teaspoons chili bean sauce½ teaspoon sesame oil1 teaspoon sugar½ teaspoon salt, plus more to tasteRinse the green beans and dry them thoroughly; even a small amount of water will cause oil in the wok to spit. Cut the beans into 2-inch lengths.Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, stir together the rice wine, chili bean sauce, sesame oil, sugar, and salt until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside.Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat until a bead of water sizzles and evaporates on contact. Add the peanut oil and swirl to coat the bottom. Add the green beans and stir-fry, keeping the beans constantly moving, for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the outsides begin to blister and the beans are wilted. Turn off the heat, remove the green beans, and set aside to drain on a plate lined with paper towels.Remove all but 1 tablespoon of oil and reheat the wok. Add the chilies, Sichuan pepper, garlic, ginger, and scallions and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the mushrooms and stir-fry for another 1 minute, until the mushrooms have browned and started to crisp. Add the sauce. Return the green beans to the wok and stir-fry for another 1 minute. Transfer to a plate and serve hot.Recipe first published August 11, 2008. Revised June 10, 2013.

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Garlic Edamame with Sichuan Pepper

For years I made edamame, one of my favorite snacks, by just boiling the frozen pods and then sprinkling sea salt on top. It was easy, and if you’re using good salt, one of the tastiest things to snack on.

Then one night, while having drinks at my friend Barb‘s apartment, she whipped up a batch of edamame that was hands-down the best I had ever tasted.

Instead of boiling or steaming the edamame, she sautés the pods in a skillet with crushed garlic cloves. The edamame is cooked over a medium flame for 6 to 7 minutes, so the outsides develop a crisp garlicky flavor while the insides get cooked through.  Genius, right?

I adapted Barb’s recipe (from her blog Wishful Chef) by adding ground Sichuan pepper, which gives the edamame a nice smokiness. Either way, with or without the Sichuan pepper flourish, this garlic edamame will be an addictive snack or appetizer you’ll make again and again.

Garlic Edamame with Sichuan Pepper Author: Appetite for China (appetiteforchina.com)3 cups frozen edamame2 large garlic cloves, crushed1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil½ teaspoon sea salt¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepperThaw the frozen edamame pods by running them under hot tap water in a colander for 2 to 3 minutes. Drain and dry thoroughly with kitchen towels.Heat the oil over medium heat in a medium skillet and swirl to coat the bottom.Add the crushed garlic and cook for 30 to 40 seconds, just until fragrant. Add the edamame, salt, Sichuan pepper, and black pepper. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring often, until the edamame is crispy on the outside and cooked through. Transfer to a dish and serve.Adapted from Wishful Chef. http://www.wishfulchef.com/2011/11/garlic-edamame/

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Sichuan Eggplant

A few weeks ago I taught a Sichuan cooking class at ICE in Manhattan, and one of the many great recipes we did was a Sichuan eggplant recipe I first posted back in October 2008. And I thought, why not revisit Sichuan eggplant — also known as fish-fragrant eggplant — on this blog too? With an aromatic sauce made with chili bean paste, soy sauce, black vinegar, and Sichuan pepper, this dish has proven to be irresistible, even to people who claim to not like eggplant. So why “fish-fragrant”, you ask? Well, there’s no seafood in the dish, but read on to find out…

Eggplant is one of those vegetables that almost begs for strong, pungent spices and sauces. And one of the most popular vegetable dishes in Sichuan cooking is “fish-fragrant eggplant”, an unfortunate literal translation of the Chinese name ( yuxiang qiezi) without the cultural nuance. You see, it doesn’t actually smell or taste like fish. Rather, the name refers to method of preparation usually associated with fish in Sichuan cuisine that results in hot, sour, salty, and sweet flavors all co-mingling on the plate.

My recipe calls for Sichuan pepper, which may be a bit hard to find, but you can always leave it out or substitute a bit of cayenne pepper. For the sauce I also like to use chili bean paste that you may recall from some other Sichuan dishes like dry-fried green beans and twice-cooked pork. Vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar complete the four-flavors balance, with additional seasonings for background support.

Rather than deep-frying, like many other recipes call for, I like to use just a bit of oil and stir-fry until the outsides are golden brown. This seems to result in a less oily, but still flavorful, eggplant dish. For meatier oomph, you can also add a bit of minced pork and stir-fry it with the garlic and ginger.

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Sichuan Eggplant (Fish-Fragrant Eggplant)

Serves 4 as part of multi-course meal

1 1/2 pounds Asian eggplant2 tablespoons chicken or vegetable stock, or substitute water2 tablespoons chili bean paste2 tablespoons soy sauce2 tablespoons Chinese black vinegar, or substitute good-quality balsamic vinegar1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry2 teaspoons sugar2 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil3 garlic cloves, minced1 tablespoon minced ginger1 teaspo0n cornstarch1/2 teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper, or substitute 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepperScallions, thinly sliced, for garnishSlice each eggplant in half lengthwise, then slice each length into quarters. Cut each quarter in somewhat substantial, but still bite-sized, cubes (about 1 1/4-inch to 1 1/2-inch cubes).Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the chicken stock, chili bean paste, soy sauce, rice vinegar, rice wine, sugar, and cornstarch. Set aside.Heat the oil in a wok over high heat until a bead of water sizzles and evaporates on contact. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and swirl the pan to coat the base and sides. Add the eggplants and stir-fry until outsides become golden brown and insides begin to soften, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and Sichuan peppercorn and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Pour in the sauce mixture and mix well. Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes to allow the eggplant to full cook and the sauce to thicken enough to coat the back of a spoon.  Remove from the heat, plate, and sprinkle scallions on top.

 Recipe first posted October 21, 2008. Revised March 31, 2013.

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Sichuan Wontons + New Video!

Photo by The Crepes of Wrath

Today I’m excited to share with you a special video collaboration I recently did with Sydney from The Crepes of Wrath. Sydney and I met a few months ago at a BlogHer theater and networking event and since then, her blog has been one of my new favorites for regular reading, for both the photography and the writing. I’ve bookmarked so many of her recipes, including these beer braised ribs, miso kale salad, and chocolate chunk cookies. When she started posted short, fun cooking cooking videos, I became inspired to finally start making my own.

So when Sydney asked if I wanted to do a cooking video together, as a way for food bloggers in New York to support and promote each others’ work, I immediately said yes. Earlier this month, I spent a fun Sunday afternoon with her and her husband Kramer making (and eating!) Sichuan wontons, one of the dishes I regularly teach in my Dumplings and Wontons classes at West Elm Market and Brooklyn Brainery.

Check out the video below, then read on for more about Sichuan wontons!

If you’ve never had Sichuan wontons before, and you’re a big fan of spicy food, this is one dish that will surely go on regular rotation after you try it once. This is one of my favorite Sichuan dishes of all time, with a deliciously savory, tangy, and spicy sauce that is positively addictive. Unlike with Cantonese wontons, which usually goes into a soup with or without noodles, you just boil the wontons and drizzle a chili oil mixture over them.

I adore this sauce: chili oil (store-bought or homemade), dark or balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, Sichuan pepper, and garlic, just mixed together.  It’s spicy and numbing and tart and sweet. And you can easily make a big batch to share with family and friends, should they happen to stop by.

And the folding is pretty easy once you get the hang of it. The name for Sichuan wontons in Mandarin, chao shou, literally means “crossed hands”.  The wontons themselves are folded in a way in which the tips cross each other like arms.

In Sichuan, I’ve seen the wontons folded two ways. In the first one, you start by folding the wrapper into a triangle and then crossing the tips (“arms”) over the belly of the wonton. The second method, the “boat” method is to fold the wrapper into a rectangle; then, crunching the belly a little, you overlap the bottom edges of the two sides, as shown in the photo above. The second method is trickier at first, but more impressive once you get the hang of it.

Photo by The Crepes of Wrath

So give these a try! Just be aware: in the words of a student who recently attended one of my dumpling classes, the sauce “is so good I can drink just it straight.”

Also see: Sydney on learning to make Sichuan Wontons, over at The Crepes of Wrath

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Sichuan Wontons

Serves 6 o 8 

1 pound ground pork1 egg6 scallions, thinly sliced2 teaspoons sesame oil½ teaspoon salt¼ teaspoon black pepper½ package wonton skins

Sauce:

1 tablespoon minced garlic2 tablespoons soy sauce½ tablespoon sugar1 tablespoon chili oil2 teaspoons Chinese black vinegar or good-quality balsamic vinegar¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepperIn a large bowl, combine the pork, egg, sesame oil, salt, pepper, and most of the scallions (reserving a small handful for garnish at the end.) Mix until everything is well-incorporated. The filling should be sticky and just slightly wet.Fill a small ramekin or bowl with water and place it by your side. This will be for sealing the wontons.Angle a wonton wrapper so that it faces you like a diamond. Place one heaping teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper. Dip your fingers in the water and wet the outside corners of the wonton wrapper. (Keep the extra wrappers covered with a barely damp towel until ready to use, to prevent them from drying out.) One easy way to wrap is to form a triangle by folding the bottom tip to the top tip and pinching out as much air as possible. Add a dab of water to the inside of the left tip, fold it over the right tip to overlap (as shown in the picture above) and press together For the “boat” version, start by folding the wrapper in half to form a rectangle. Add a dab of water to the bottom edge of the left side and and fold it over the bottom edge of the ridge side, so that one overlaps the other. The end result should resemble a boat, with two tips cradling a puff of filling in the middle.Place the finished wonton on a plate. Keep the finished wontons covered with a barely damp towel while you repeat the process with the remaining wontons.In a medium bowl, mix together the garlic, soy sauce, sugar, chili oil, black vinegar, and Sichuan pepper. Stir until the sugar is fully dissolved and set aside.Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Put in the wontons and boil for 4 minutes, until the wontons float to the top. Remove them with a slotted spoon and transfer to a serving dish. Drizzle the chili sauce over the wontons and sprinkle the remaining scallions on top.One easy way to wrap is to form a triangle by folding the bottom tip to the top tip and pinching out as much air as possible. Add a dab of egg wash to the inside of the left tip, fold it over the right tip to overlap (as shown in the picture above) and press together.

Recipe first posted February 3, 2011. Revised April 22, 2013.

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Sichuan Red Oil Wontons (红油抄手)

Sichuan Wontons pictures (1 of 5)

The wonton has to be one of the most versatile food ever to be created. First of all, the stuffing, which is traditionally seasoned minced pork, can also be a combination of shrimp and pork, ala Cantonese style shrimp wontons. Or have leeks added, which is a popular Northern Chinese style. Then there is the cooking method. The traditional way is to boil and serve in a soup, such as the regular wonton soup. But it can also be deep-fried and served with dipping sauce. And then there’s the Sichuan style, where the wontons are boiled, drained and then serve in a spicy chili oil black vinaigrette sauce. These are called Sichuan Red Oil Wontons.

Sichuan Red Oil Wontons are more popularly known as Red Oil Chao Shou (????). When literally translated, Chao Shou means ‘crossed hands’ or ‘arms folded’. The name may have originated from its similarity to the way people might fold their arms across their chests during the cold weather in Sichuan, which is exactly how the two lower corners of the wonton are folded after it’s been shaped into a triangle, crossed over the meat filled mid section.

This tantalizing little appetizer is appealing anytime, especially during cold weather. One bite of the savory wonton accompanied by the heat of the chili oil is enough to warm the very cockles of your heart.

(Click Page 2 for the Sichuan Red Oil Wontons Recipe)

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Sichuan Red Oil Wontons (Wontons in Chili Oil)

I have been working with Ellie of Almost Bourdain fame—now my partner at Gourmand Recipes—for a few months now and I absolutely adore the woman. We chat every day on emails and sometimes we would hop on SKYPE for a quick video chat. I just can’t stress enough that Ellie is a fantastic cook who can cook and bake, and a master in all cuisines ranging from American, European, and Asian. It’s really amazing!

When we first started working, Ellie was kind enough to offer me to republish all her Asian recipes on Rasa Malaysia…there are so many delicious recipes that I wanted to share with you and this is one of them: Sichuan Red Oil Wontons, or wontons in chili oil (????).

These spicy Sichuan wontons are extremely popular in Sichuan. When I visited Chengdu, Sichuan a couple of years ago, I almost couldn’t find regular non-spicy wontons. All wontons sold by the street vendors, roadside stalls, or restaurants are doused in the spicy red oil and vinegar sauce. They are explosively hot, but utterly addictive and delicious.

Here is Ellie’s recipe for Sichuan Red Oil Wontons. To get more Ellie’s recipes, check out Gourmand Recipes.

(Click Page 2 for the Sichuan Red Oil Wontons Recipe)

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Sichuan Eggplant (Fish-Fragrant Eggplant)

This week I taught a Sichuan cooking class at ICE in Manhattan, and one of the many great recipes we did was a Sichuan eggplant recipe I first posted in October, 2008. And I thought, why not revisit fish-fragrant eggplant on this blog too? With an aromatic sauce made with chili bean paste, soy sauce, black vinegar, and Sichuan pepper, this dish has proven to be irresistible, even to people who claim to not like eggplant. So why “fish-fragrant”, you ask? Well, there’s no seafood in the dish, but read on to find out…

Eggplant is one of those vegetables that almost begs for strong, pungent spices and sauces. And one of the most popular vegetable dishes in Sichuan cooking is “fish-fragrant eggplant”, an unfortunate literal translation of the Chinese name (???? yuxiang qiezi) without the cultural nuance. You see, it doesn’t actually smell or taste like fish. Rather, the name refers to method of preparation usually associated with fish in Sichuan cuisine that results in hot, sour, salty, and sweet flavors all co-mingling on the plate.

Some versions use dried red chilis for spiciness, while others use ground chili flakes. Some recipes written for the overseas market eschew Sichuan peppercorn, since the ingredient may be hard to find. I like to use both Sichuan peppercorn and ??? (dou ban jiang), a chili bean paste with fava beans that you may recall from some other Sichuan dishes like dry-fried green beans and twice-cooked pork. Vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar complete the four-flavors balance, with additional seasonings for background support.

Rather than deep-frying, like many other recipes call for, I like to use just a bit of oil and stir-fry until the outsides are golden brown. This seems to result in a less oily, but still flavorful, eggplant dish. For meatier oomph, you can also add a bit of minced pork and stir-fry it with the garlic and ginger.

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Sichuan Fish-Fragrant Eggplant

Serves 4 as part of multi-course meal

1 1/2 pounds Asian eggplant
2 tablespoons chicken stock, or substitute water
2 tablespoons chili bean paste
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Chinese black vinegar, or substitute good-quality balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper
1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
Scallions, thinly sliced, for garnish

Slice each eggplant in half lengthwise, then slice each length into quarters. Cut each quarter in somewhat substantial, but still bite-sized, cubes (about 1 1/4-inch to 1 1/2-inch cubes).Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the chicken stock, chili bean paste, soy sauce, rice vinegar, rice wine, and sugar. Set aside.Heat the oil in a wok over high heat until a bead of water sizzles and evaporates on contact. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and swirl the pan to coat the base and sides. Add the eggplants and stir-fry until outsides become golden brown and insides begin to soften, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and Sichuan peppercorn and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Pour in the sauce mixture and mix well. Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes to allow the eggplant to full cook and the sauce to thicken enough to coat the back of a spoon.  Remove from the heat, plate, and sprinkle scallions on top.

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Other Asian eggplant recipes to try:

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Tagged as: Chinese, Recipes, Sichuan, Vegetarian

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Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking

Elizabeth David had it easy. All she had to do was eat her way through France and Italy and translate the essence of the encountered cuisines for a ravenous, literate, English-speaking public. Fuschia Dunlop, on the other hand, went to Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan in China, where she ended up the first foreign student enrolled at the Sichuan Institute of Higher Cuisine. That was nearly 10 years ago. After annual return visits and endless research she has produced, in English, a magnificent introduction to the food and foodways of Sichuan. She is in every way the dharma inheritor of Elizabeth David.

You too may start to salivate halfway through the introduction to Dunlop's magnificent Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking. Perhaps it begins when she explains xian, "one of the most beautiful words in the Chinese culinary language." It describes an entire range of flavor and sensation, "the indefinable, delicious taste of fresh meat, poultry, and seafood, the scrumptious flavors of a pure chicken soup..." Before you know it you are running headlong into a world of 23 distinct flavors and 56 cooking methods (they are all listed at the end of the book). Sichuan is the place where "barbarian peppers" met up with a natural cornucopia and a literary cooking tradition stretching back to the fifth century A.D. Innovation with cooking technique and new and challenging ingredients remains a hallmark of Sichuan. After describing basic cutting skills and cooking techniques, Dunlop presents her recipes in chapters that include "Noodles, Dumplings, and Other Street Treats"; "Appetizers"; "Meat"; "Poultry"; "Fish"; "Vegetables and Bean Curd"; "Stocks and Soup"; "Sweet Dishes"; and "Hotpot." Yes, you will find Gong Bao (Kung Pao) Chicken with Peanuts--Gong Bao Ji Ding. It's named after a late 19th-century governor of Sichuan, Ding Baozhen, which brought on the wrath of the Cultural Revolution for its imperial associations. Until rehabilitation, the dish was called "fast-fried chicken cubes" or "chicken cubes with seared chilies."

Land of Plenty is literary food writing at its best, as well as a marvelous invitation to new skills and flavors for the home cook. Read it. Cook it. Eat it. And take pleasure in the emerging career of Fuschia Dunlop, a big new voice in the world of food. --Schuyler Ingle

Price: $30.00

Click here to buy from Amazon

Sichuan Wontons, plus 20 Recipe Ideas for Chinese New Year

As a kid, I looked forward to Chinese New Year for just one reason: cash, dressed in red evelopes. Like other kids in my extended family, I didn't get much of an allowance, much less Christmas or birthday money. So Chinese New Year income, about $200 to $300 if you have a large family within a 50-mile radius, was junk food and cassette money for an entire year. 

The younger me was much less interested in all the food that came with Chinese New Year. My parents normally went out for dim sum at least 2 to 3 times a month, so going out for dim sum and long banquet dinners for a week straight just seemed tedious at best, torture by the 7th night.

I would never have guessed that as an adult, I would actually look forward to the orgy of food at New Year's. When my parents still lived in Boston, I rode the bus every year to spend at least a long weekend there, and eating meal at the same restaurants I dreaded 10 years before. During my two years in China, I braved exhobirtant plane fares and a crippling blizzard just to spend Chinese New Year in Hong Kong. You rarely receive red envelopes as a grown-up, but the 5 or 6 dim sum outings, banquets with roast duck and fish and suckling pig, and lavish homemade meals more than makes up for it.

Taking money out of the picture really does allow you to focus on the more important things in life. 

Alas, this year I'm not in Hong Kong. Or Boston. My parents are retired and living in southern China. The times when I don't have family nearby, I still like to make a lot of food over the two week period just to celebrate in my own little way. Like noodles, or turnip cake, or red-cooked pork. And especially dumplings, because it's not too hard to churn out a hundred in an afternoon and save any extras for the end of the New Year period.

This year I decided to start off CNY with Sichuan wontons instead of my usual dumplings. The name in Mandarin, chao shou, literally means "crossed hands".  The wontons themselves are folded in a way in which the tips cross each other like arms. 

In Sichuan, I've seen the wontons folded two ways. In the first one, you start by folding the wrapper into a triangle and then crossing the tips ("arms") over the belly of the wonton. The second method, the "boat" method is to fold the wrapper into a rectangle; then, crunching the belly a little, you overlap the bottom edges of the two sides, as shown in the photo above. The second method is trickier at first, but more impressive once you get the hang of it. 

Unlike with Cantonese wontons, which usually goes into a soup with noodles or bok choy, you boil the wontons and drizzle a chili oil mixture over them. I adore this sauce: chili oil (store-bought or homemade), dark or balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, Sichuan pepper, and garlic, just mixed together.  It's spicy and numbing and tart and sweet. And you can easily make a big batch to share with family and friends, should they happen to stop by. 

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Sichuan Wontons

Serves 4 to 6 as appetizers

½ pound ground pork
2 teaspoons sesame oil
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 egg, beaten
½ package wonton skins

Sauce:
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon chili oil
2 teaspoons Chinese black vinegar or good-quality balsamic vinegar
¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper

1. In a large bowl, combine the pork, sesame oil, salt, and pepper and mix until everything is well-incorporated. The filling should be sticky and slightly wet.

2. Crack the egg into a small bowl and beat lightly with a fork. This egg wash will be used for sealing the wonton wrappers. 

3. Angle a wonton wrapper so that it faces you like a diamond. With a pastry brush, spread a thin layer of egg wash along the top two edges of the wrapper. (Keep the extra wrappers covered with a barely damp towel until ready to use, to prevent them from drying out.) Place one heaping teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper.

a. One easy way to wrap is to form a triangle by folding the bottom tip to the top tip and pinching out as much air as possible. Add a dab of egg wash to the inside of the left tip, fold it over the right tip to overlap (as shown in the picture above) and press together. b. For the "boat" version, start by folding the wrapper in half to form a rectangle. Add a dab of egg wash to the bottom edge of the left side and and fold it over the bottom edge of the ridge side, so that one overlaps the other. The end result should resemble a boat, with two tips cradling a puff of filling in the middle.

4. Place the finished wonton on a plate. Keep the finished wontons covered with a barely damp towel while you repeat the process with the remaining wontons.

5. In a medium bowl, mix together the garlic, soy sauce, sugar, chili oil, black vinegar, and Sichuan pepper. Stir until the sugar is fully dissolved and set aside.

6. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Put in the wontons and boil for 3 to 4 minutes, until the wontons float to the top. Remove them with a slotted spoon and transfer to a serving dish. Drizzle the chili sauce over the wontons and sprinkle the sliced scallions on top.

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If you're looking for more Chinese New Year's recipes  (including dumplings) see my recommendations below. Also check out my recipe index for more ideas. 

 

Snacks and Appetizers

Noodles

Dumplings

Seafood

Braised Poultry and Red Meat

Vegetable Sides

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Sichuan Wontons, plus 20 Recipe Ideas for Chinese New Year

As a kid, I looked forward to Chinese New Year for just one reason: cash, dressed in red evelopes. Like other kids in my extended family, I didn't get much of an allowance, much less Christmas or birthday money. So Chinese New Year income, about $200 to $300 if you have a large family within a 50-mile radius, was junk food and cassette money for an entire year. 

The younger me was much less interested in all the food that came with Chinese New Year. My parents normally went out for dim sum at least 2 to 3 times a month, so going out for dim sum and long banquet dinners for a week straight just seemed tedious at best, torture by the 7th night.

I would never have guessed that as an adult, I would actually look forward to the orgy of food at New Year's. When my parents still lived in Boston, I rode the bus every year to spend at least a long weekend there, and eating meal at the same restaurants I dreaded 10 years before. During my two years in China, I braved exhobirtant plane fares and a crippling blizzard just to spend Chinese New Year in Hong Kong. You rarely receive red envelopes as a grown-up, but the 5 or 6 dim sum outings, banquets with roast duck and fish and suckling pig, and lavish homemade meals more than makes up for it.

Taking money out of the picture really does allow you to focus on the more important things in life. 

Alas, this year I'm not in Hong Kong. Or Boston. My parents are retired and living in southern China. The times when I don't have family nearby, I still like to make a lot of food over the two week period just to celebrate in my own little way. Like noodles, or turnip cake, or red-cooked pork. And especially dumplings, because it's not too hard to churn out a hundred in an afternoon and save any extras for the end of the New Year period.

This year I decided to start off CNY with Sichuan wontons instead of my usual dumplings. The name in Mandarin, chao shou, literally means "crossed hands".  The wontons themselves are folded in a way in which the tips cross each other like arms. 

In Sichuan, I've seen the wontons folded two ways. In the first one, you start by folding the wrapper into a triangle and then crossing the tips ("arms") over the belly of the wonton. The second method, the "boat" method is to fold the wrapper into a rectangle; then, crunching the belly a little, you overlap the bottom edges of the two sides, as shown in the photo above. The second method is trickier at first, but more impressive once you get the hang of it. 

Unlike with Cantonese wontons, which usually goes into a soup with noodles or bok choy, you boil the wontons and drizzle a chili oil mixture over them. I adore this sauce: chili oil (store-bought or homemade), dark or balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, Sichuan pepper, and garlic, just mixed together.  It's spicy and numbing and tart and sweet. And you can easily make a big batch to share with family and friends, should they happen to stop by. 

______________________

Sichuan Wontons

Serves 4 to 6 as appetizers

½ pound ground pork
2 teaspoons sesame oil
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 egg, beaten
½ package wonton skins

Sauce:
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon chili oil
2 teaspoons Chinese black vinegar or good-quality balsamic vinegar
¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper

1. In a large bowl, combine the pork, sesame oil, salt, and pepper and mix until everything is well-incorporated. The filling should be sticky and slightly wet.

2. Crack the egg into a small bowl and beat lightly with a fork. This egg wash will be used for sealing the wonton wrappers. 

3. Angle a wonton wrapper so that it faces you like a diamond. With a pastry brush, spread a thin layer of egg wash along the top two edges of the wrapper. (Keep the extra wrappers covered with a barely damp towel until ready to use, to prevent them from drying out.) Place one heaping teaspoon of filling in the center of the wrapper.

a. One easy way to wrap is to form a triangle by folding the bottom tip to the top tip and pinching out as much air as possible. Add a dab of egg wash to the inside of the left tip, fold it over the right tip to overlap (as shown in the picture above) and press together. b. For the "boat" version, start by folding the wrapper in half to form a rectangle. Add a dab of egg wash to the bottom edge of the left side and and fold it over the bottom edge of the ridge side, so that one overlaps the other. The end result should resemble a boat, with two tips cradling a puff of filling in the middle.

4. Place the finished wonton on a plate. Keep the finished wontons covered with a barely damp towel while you repeat the process with the remaining wontons.

5. In a medium bowl, mix together the garlic, soy sauce, sugar, chili oil, black vinegar, and Sichuan pepper. Stir until the sugar is fully dissolved and set aside.

6. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Put in the wontons and boil for 3 to 4 minutes, until the wontons float to the top. Remove them with a slotted spoon and transfer to a serving dish. Drizzle the chili sauce over the wontons and sprinkle the sliced scallions on top.

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If you're looking for more Chinese New Year's recipes  (including dumplings) see my recommendations below. Also check out my recipe index for more ideas. 

 

Snacks and Appetizers

Noodles

Dumplings

Seafood

Braised Poultry and Red Meat

Vegetable Sides

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Lee Kum Kee Sichuan Spicy Noodle Sauce - 8 oz

Made by Lee Kum Kee, a well-known, modern producer of high-quality products. This spicy Sichuan-style noodle soup base made from red chili, chinese vegetables, shrimp and soy beans. Use in all types of soup noodle dishes. For example, cook 4 oz chantaboon rice noodles until done, drain and place in a bowl. Bring 1/2 cup water and 3 tbsp Sichuan Spicy Noodle Sauce to a boil, then pour over noodles and serve. Add meat or vegetables of your choice. Additional images, recipes and detailed description at ImportFood.com.

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