Stir-Fried Lotus Root with Garlic and Black Bean (豆豉炒藕片)
A fragrant and savory Sichuan-style Chinese lotus root stir fry with green pepper, garlic, chili sauce, and fermented black beans— makes an irresistible side dish on the table. Serve with steamed rice.
- Prep Time: 13
- Cook Time: 7
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Stir-Fries
- Method: Cook
- Cuisine: Chinese
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
Scale
- 10 oz (274g) fresh lotus root, peeled (about 2 cups sliced)*
- Cooking oil
- One Anaheim green pepper (185g), or sub a green bell pepper, sliced into thin 1/4-inch rounds
- 3–4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp Sichuan chili bean paste (doubanjiang)
- 1 tbsp dried fermented black beans (dou chi), soaked in 1 tbsp warm water
- 3–4 dried red chilies, snipped in half and seeds shaken out
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
Instructions
- Prep the ingredients: peel the lotus root and cut them with a sharp knife into thin, 1/8-inch slices. Thinly slice the green peppers to match. Finely chop the garlic.
- Heat a skillet over medium-high flame, and add enough oil to cover the bottom. When oil is shimmering but not yet smoking, place shallow-fry lotus root slices in a single layer. Fry, flipping once, until both sides are browned and nicely caramelized on the edges. You may need to do this in two batches. Set aside.
- Heat the same pan over medium heat and add 1 tbsp oil, swirling to coat. Add dried chilies and fermented black beans, frying briefly until aromatic. Add the garlic and the dollops of chili bean sauce, and fry until garlic is aromatic (but not burned!) and chili sauce has released its red oil. Add in the sliced peppers and stir-fry for 20 seconds, then increase the heat to high and add the lotus root from step 1. Toss briefly to just coat, then season with sugar and additional salt to taste. Continue to stir-fry for one more minute until everything is piping hot and smells delicious. Turn off heat. Transfer everything to a dish, and enjoy.
Notes
- I recommend using the narrow/tapered Anaheim or Cubanelle variety of green peppers, as they have thinner skin than regular globe-shaped bell peppers and flavor-wise are still mild/sweet but have much more flavor.
- You may find that you don’t need the additional salt at the end– it depends on the chili bean paste you’re using, some brands are more salty than others.
- *If you can’t find lotus root in your local stores, you can substitute potato! It’ll be an entirely different dish with different textures, but the green peppers and Sichuan flavors in this recipe are equally delicious paired with fried potato.
