spicy blistered beans

2 min read

You have not tasted the true potential of the humble green bean until you’ve tried this classic and wok hei-infused Sichuanese dish. The key is the ‘dry-frying’technique: rapid tossing of the raw beans in hot oil until they begin to blister. We source traditional yard-long beans because they are more robust than other varieties, but French beans would do the trick too. Be sure to include the Chinese mushrooms-their fleshiness and daan(springy) mouthfeel adds a de-lightful extra layer of texture to the dish.

Serves 44 dried Chinese mushrooms 2 pinches granulated sugar 400g yard-long or French beans, trimmed vegetable oil, for cooking for the seasoning 2 cloves garlic, finely diced 1 tbsp very finely diced ginger 4 spring onions, white parts only, finely sliced tsp cracked Sichuan peppercorns 14 tsp dried chilli flakes or 1 whole dried chilli, sliced into rounds for the sauce 3 tsp chilli bean sauce 2 tsp Shaoxing rice wine tsp salt 112 tsp granulated sugar 1 Soak the Chinese mushrooms in bowl of hot water with the sugar for 20 minutes, then drain.

Remove and discard the stalks and finely dice the caps. Mix the mushrooms and seasoning ingredi-ents together in a small bowl and set aside.

2 If the chilli bean sauce is chunky, chop it roughly so there are no large pieces, then mix it with the remaining sauce ingredients and 2 tablespoons water and set aside.

3 Rinse the beans and use kitchen paper to pat them dry. If you are using yard-long beans, cut them into 8-10cm lengths.

4 Heat 2 tablespoons oil in the wok over a medium-high heat. Add the beans and stir-fry for 5-6 minutes or until they are slightly blistered and softened but not limp. Remove the beans and drain on a double layer of kitchen paper.

5 Add 2 teaspoons oil to the wok and stir-fry the mushrooms and seasoning mixture over a medium heat for 30 seconds, until the spices are fragrant. Turn off the heat and rest for 2 minutes before stirring in the sauce mixture.

6 Return the wok to medium heat and when the sauce starts to sizzle, add the beans and stir-fry for 1 minute until the beans are warm and coated with the sauce. Serve immediately.