Cold and windy weather calling for Mala! It is a popular dish among the Chinese. As an Asian Chinese, I crave Mala anytime and can have it every day.
To some of the readers that never try Mala Xiang Guo. Mala gives you a numbing and spicy taste in the mouth after eating it. The numbness is caused by Sichuan Pepper. Xiang Guo literally means fragrant wok.
Most of the time, Mala Xiang Guo was cooked with vegetables and meat. It is a comforting dish that warmed up your tummy during a cold night.
You can choose to cook Mala Xiang Guo with vegetables only and it is simple yet delicious.
The Recipe
Mala Xiang Guo usually cooks with vegetables such as potatoes, lotus roots, bok choy. You can opt to use any kind of vegetables. In this recipe, I used the ingredients below.
Lotus root (sliced and blanched)
2 potatoes (sliced & blanched)
4 shiitake mushrooms (sliced)
2 pieces of five-spice tofu
Bok choy & Kai-Lan Stems (greens of your preference)
A handful of cilantro (for garnishing)
Noodles (cook according to the instructions and set aside) (optional, You can choose not to use noodles and eat it with white rice)
Spices, Herbs, Oil.
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
1 tablespoon of sesame oil
2 star anise
Half tablespoons ground Sichuan peppercorn
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 cinnamon stick
3 bay leaves
3 slices of fresh ginger
2 dried red chilies
1 tablespoon hot broad beans sauce
2 tablespoons @leekumkeesg hot pot soup base sauce (vegetarian-friendly, alliums-free)
2 tsp brown sugar
Salt or soy sauce to taste
1 cup water
Cooking the Mala Xiang Guo
1) Please ensure that you already blanched the potatoes and lotus root before stir fry everything together.
2) Heat up oil in a wok, sauté shiitake mushrooms and tofu until slightly brown. This is followed by adding sesame oil, ginger, cinnamon stick, fennel seeds, bay leaves, dried chilies and star anise. Continue saute until fragrant.
3) Follow by adding potato and lotus roots, sauté for a while and add hot pot soup base sauce and hot beans sauce.
4)To bring out the flavour, I have added soy sauce, salt and sugar.
5) Continue stir and mix well. Followed by, adding greens and water.
6) Cover the lid and let simmer for 2-3 minutes. Followed by adding noodles and stir-fry for half a minute
7) Your Mala Xiang Guo is ready to serve!
[Alliums-free recipe]
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