Hot and Sour Cabbage (Suan La Bai Cai)
Napa cabbage flash-fried in a scorching wok with dried chilies and Sichuan peppercorns, then splashed with black vinegar so it's smoky, tangy and still crunchy. Ready in under 20 minutes.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Cut the cabbage
Pull the leaves apart. Cut the thick white stems into thin diagonal slices and tear the green leafy parts into big pieces. Keep the stems and leaves in two separate piles, since the stems need longer cooking.
- 600g napa cabbage
✅ Done when: stems are sliced thin and leaves are torn into bite-sized pieces, with the two kept separate
Mix the sauce
In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, black vinegar, sugar, salt and the cornstarch-water mixture until smooth.
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1½ tbsp black vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp + 2 tbsp water cornstarch mixture
✅ Done when: liquid is smooth with no lumps of cornstarch
Fry the pepper, chilies and garlic
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Stir-fry the cabbage
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Add the sauce and serve
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Cut the cabbage
Pull the leaves apart. Cut the thick white stems into thin diagonal slices and tear the green leafy parts into big pieces. Keep the stems and leaves in two separate piles, since the stems need longer cooking.
- 600g napa cabbage
✅ Done when: stems are sliced thin and leaves are torn into bite-sized pieces, with the two kept separate
Mix the sauce
In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, black vinegar, sugar, salt and the cornstarch-water mixture until smooth.
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1½ tbsp black vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp + 2 tbsp water cornstarch mixture
✅ Done when: liquid is smooth with no lumps of cornstarch
Fry the pepper, chilies and garlic
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Stir-fry the cabbage
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Add the sauce and serve
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The Story Behind the Dish
Suan la bai cai is one of the most common home-style vegetable dishes in western and central China — cheap, quick and full of flavour. Napa cabbage was historically stored through the northern winter, making it one of China's most important vegetables.
The technique of splashing vinegar into a very hot wok gives the dish its signature smoky tang.
⭐ Why It's Famous
It proves a humble cabbage can be thrilling: smoky, sour, spicy and crunchy all at once.
💡 Fun Fact
In Beijing, residents once stockpiled napa cabbage by the cartload every autumn — it was called the 'patriotic cabbage' because everyone relied on it through winter.
Sichuan & Hunan
30.57°N, 104.07°E
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