Chinese Chinese Food: Hot Pepper Lotus Root

It has been a while since I last posted a food blog, but this one has been waiting its turn for a spot on the interwebs. When I first arrived in China I thought that I would try to embrace a vegetarian diet. Unfortunately I learned that ordering vegetarian dishes is not always easy, seeing as there is typically always some kind of meat in most dishes. You can ask to have something without meat, but usually such requests will go unheeded. Suffice it to say I realized the conflict in my desire to sample all the variety of Chinese cuisine and trying to eat strictly vegetarian. Among my favorite veggie dishes has got to be this one. I can never remember the name of this dish, so for lack of a better name I call it "Hot Pepper Lotus Root".

This dish is available at a local restaurant called Shui Zhu Yu 水煮鱼 which  translates to fished boiled in water. The name sounds strange out of context, but is actually the signature dish served at this establishment. I tried it once and Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm! It was really good, but that's another post in Chinese Chinese Food. THIS dish is made with pan seared pork belly, half cut hot peppers, a thin celery type stalk, sliced onion, herb, and lotus root. "What is Lotus root?" some of you are probably asking yourself. Luckily I'm here to save the the Google search. Lotus roots are rhizomes harvested from muddy wetlands, and are starchy, crisp vegetables that resembles Jicama. It has long round hollows that run the entire length of the tuber, and usually has 3 long segments when harvested. At first look, this food looks strange and very foreign to standard American eyes, however it is very common in China, and surprisingly delicious! The vegetables, sans the onion, are added to the pork belly and stir-fried until slightly tender. Sliced onions are laid on the bottom of a small wok and topped with the stir-fry mixture, and served on a small fire stove.

This dish really hits your taste buds in the face with spice! The first time I had this dish was with my classmates shortly after arriving in China, and the reaction from the non-hot-heads was one of shock, pain, and confusion. Considering a majority of the dish is sliced hot peppers this came to not surprise to me. I really love the taste of this dish. The pork belly, onion, and peppers make up the basic flavor of savory fatty pork, while the herb and "celery" add body and texture. The star of this show is definitely the Lotus root. At first it is tender-crisp with mild flavor, however, as the dish continues to cook over the flame the porous root absorbs the flavor of the pork, peppers and onions. The Lotus and onions begin to caramelize, a thin gravy pools in the wok, the lotus absorbs the savory, sweet, spice of the pork, and transforms in a tender, meaty bite!

Another way to enjoy this dish is to substitute lotus for Nappa cabbage hearts. The cabbage gets very tender in the pan, and gets coated in the spicy pork gravy making it a very yummy mouthful. I personally thin that the cabbage version is less spicy, which kinda defeats the purpose in my opinion. The texture is less diverse, making is less appealing in my book, but still good if you can't get lotus root.

Something that I really like about this dish is that most of the time you are eating it, everything is still pretty crisp. Unlike many of the homemade stir fries or take out meals these vegetables retain the texture.  If you are afraid of the spice factor, I've noticed that the longer this cooks over the flame, the less spicy it is. The capsicum gets less intense in the same way that alcohol in fondue cheese decreases the longer it cooks. The lotus root makes this dish surprisingly satisfying. Those carbs go great with the pork and veggies. This would make a great healthy lunch for two people to share!

I choose to eat this with a bowl of rice, dishing small portions onto a plate, and eating small bites of each. I wouldn't mix this together haphazardly like you would Sweet and Sour Chicken. The vegetables are delicious and totally worth eating by themselves! Mixing them with the rice would strip off the gravy and diminish the flavor. If you have a chance to try this dish I highly recommend it!

You could make this in a cast iron skilled and serve it pipping hot. (a fajita plate probably would not work well for this since it develops a gravy). What you need:

5-10 Green Chilies cut in half lengthwise
1 medium stalk of celery cut into thin bite-size pieces
A few pieces of bacon cut in 1 inch pieces
1 cup onion sliced thick
1 1/2 cups sliced Lotus root
or
1 1/2 cups Nappa cabbage hearts
1/4 cup chopped Cilantro
*Probably 1-2 cloves of sliced garlic
2-3 Red Chilies (Optional if you want it spicier)

Stir Fry Sauce
A few tables spoons of oil for frying
1 cup cooked rice

Thanks for reading! I hope all of you are doing well, I miss you all, and hope to share more food finds with you in the next few weeks!