Hand-torn leaves cooked to a tender-crispy texture, Chinese style cabbage stir-fry is simple yet delicious. This recipe shows you two versions: a vegetarian one with Mala seasoning & a meaty one with Chinese sausage.
WHAT KIND OF CABBAGE?
Let’s first talk about the main ingredient, cabbage. For today’s cabbage stir-fry, Chinese chefs/cooks usually use a variety known as Taiwanese flat cabbage. It’s oblate-shaped (like a pumpkin) and its leaves are loosely packed into layers (The regular green or purple cabbage commonly found in the West are much rounder and more densely layered).
I use another variety called sweetheart cabbage (aka pointed cabbage, hispi cabbage) as a substitute. It also has loosely packed leaves and a similar taste to Taiwanese flat cabbage.
WHY HAND-TORN?
If you ever see cabbage stir-fry on the menu in Chinese restaurants, highly likely the name of the dish would be “Shou Si Bao Cai/手撕包菜” which means hand-torn cabbage. Unlike the usual knife-cutting method, cabbage is torn manually into irregular pieces.
INGREDIENTS
For the vegetarian version
- ▢1 tablespoon cooking oil
- ▢1 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorn
- ▢3 cloves garlic, sliced
- ▢3 slices ginger
- ▢6 dried chillies – or fresh chillies
- ▢250 g cabbage, hand-torn into small pieces – see note 1
- ▢½ teaspoon dark soy sauce
- ▢½ teaspoon light soy sauce
- ▢¼ teaspoon black rice vinegar
- ▢1 pinch salt
- ▢1 pinch sugar
For the sausage version
- ▢1 tablespoon cooking oil
- ▢2 Chinese sausages (Lap cheong), sliced – see note 2
- ▢1 teaspoon ginger, julienned
- ▢250 g cabbage, hand-torn into small pieces – see note 1
- ▢1 stalk scallions, finely chopped
- ▢2 teaspoon oyster sauce
- ▢½ teaspoon light soy sauce
INSTRUCTIONS
For the vegetarian version
- Add cooking oil and Sichuan peppercorns to a cold wok. Sizzle over high heat until fragrant (do not burn). Remove the peppercorns with a spatular.
- Fry ginger, garlic and dried chillies in the oil briefly then stir in cabbage.
- When the cabbage wilts, add soy sauce, black rice vinegar, salt and sugar.
- Stir fry for a further 20 seconds or so. Dish out and serve warm.
For the sausage version
- Heat up the wok until it lightly smokes. Pour in oil then add Chinese sausage and ginger.
- When the sausage slices curl up a little, stir in cabbage and scallions.
- When the cabbage wilts add oyster sauce and light soy sauce.
- Stir fry for a further 20 seconds or so. Dish out and serve warm.
NOTES
1. Taiwanese flat cabbage and sweetheart cabbage are the best choices for this recipe.
2. If you don’t have Chinese sausage to hand, use pork belly slices instead. Marinate with light soy sauce, Shaoxing rice wine, white pepper, salt and a little cornstarch. Then stir fry the same way.
