Karl’s Sichuan Pickle Salad

This is Eilene’s birthday week, so she got to choose Sunday’s dinner. She wanted spicy chicken and pan fried noodles. While this is a meal in itself, I thought that a cold, vegetable salad would be a nice addition to the meal.

Karl’s Sichuan Pickle Salad

This is sort of a quick kimchi with Sichuan pickles. Sichuan preserved vegetables are pickled mustard stem and may be bought wither plain or spicy—covered in chili sauce. I prefer the spicy ones like I had in Chengdu.

Karl’s Sichuan Pickle Salad

Ingredients

1 small head Napa cabbage (about 3 cups coarsely chopped)
½ tsp. Kosher salt

1 tsp. chili garlic sauce
1 tsp. black vinegar
1 tsp. dark sesame oil
1 tsp. shaoxing (rice wine)
½ tsp. fresh ginger, grated
¼ tsp. sugar
3.5 oz. preserved vegetables (Sichuan pickle)

Directions

1. Slice the cabbage across the head into ¾ inch strips and separate the leaves.

2. Put the cabbage slices in a medium bowl  and sprinkle them with salt. Let the cabbage sweat for 30-40 minutes.

Tip: Toss every five minutes to redistribute the brine that forms.

3. Squeeze the liquid out of the cabbage and drain any brine remaining in the bowl.

4. Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and toss to coat the leaves thoroughly.

5. Allow the salad to meld in the refrigerator for 1-3 hours.

Tip: Toss occasionally to redistribute the dressing.

6. Serve chilled.