Dry-Fried Sichuan Green Beans
Green beans are shallow-fried in hot oil until blistered and wrinkled, then tossed in a wok with salty preserved vegetable, garlic, dried chilies and toasted Sichuan peppercorn. The result is savory, smoky and tingly, with a concentrated bean flavor and no sauce.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 14 min
- Wait
- 10 min
- Total
- 39 min
- Makes
- About 3 cups (4 side-dish servings)
Steps
Before you start
- Wash the green beans at least 10 minutes ahead and dry them completely. Wet beans make hot oil spatter violently.
- Have every ingredient prepped and within reach before you turn on the heat. The last stages take only a couple of minutes.
- Keep a pot lid or splatter screen nearby in case the oil spits, and use a heatproof bowl to catch the hot oil you drain off.
- Ya cai (Sichuan or Tianjin preserved mustard stem) is salty, so don't add extra salt until you've tasted the finished beans.
Dry the beans
- Wash the green beans, trim the stem ends, and leave the tails on.
- Spread them on a clean kitchen towel, roll them up and pat firmly, then unroll and let them air-dry for 10 minutes.
- Snap any very long beans into 4-inch (10 cm) lengths so they cook evenly.
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Ready when: Beans feel completely dry to the touch, with no beads of water
Tip: Water is the main cause of oil spatter. Dry the beans more than you think you need to.
Prep the aromatics
- Snip the chilies in half and shake out most of the seeds.
- Mince the garlic and ginger, finely chop the ya cai, and slice the scallion.
- Measure the wine, soy sauce and sugar into a small bowl so they're ready to add together.
- Set everything near the stove.
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Tip: Don't rinse the ya cai. Chop it fine so its salty, savory flavor spreads through the beans.
Toast the peppercorns
- Heat the dry wok over medium-low heat.
- Add the Sichuan peppercorns and stir for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Remove them from the wok as soon as they smell citrusy and floral.
- Let them cool for 1 minute, then grind them coarsely in a spice grinder or mortar.
- Wipe out the wok.
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Ready when: Peppercorns smell fragrant and citrusy and are slightly darker, with no smoke
Tip: Burnt peppercorns turn bitter. If they smoke, discard them and start again.
Fry beans in batchesOven 350°F / 175°C
- Heat the frying oil in the wok over medium-high heat to about 350°F (175°C), until a bean sizzles steadily when dipped in.
- Add half the beans carefully and stir often for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Lift them out with a spider onto the paper-towel-lined sheet pan.
- Reheat the oil for 30 seconds and fry the second batch the same way.
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Ready when: Beans are bright green with blistered, wrinkled, lightly browned skin and are tender when bitten
Tip: Don't crowd the wok. Overcrowding drops the oil temperature and gives you greasy, limp beans.
Drain the oil
- Turn off the heat.
- Carefully pour the hot oil through a spider or strainer into a heatproof bowl, leaving about 1 tablespoon in the wok.
- Let the oil cool completely before you dispose of it or save it.
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Ready when: Only a thin film, about 1 tablespoon, of oil remains in the wok
Tip: Never pour hot oil down the sink or into a plastic container.
Bloom chilies and preserved vegetable
- Return the wok to medium heat.
- Add the dried chilies and stir for 15 to 20 seconds until they darken slightly and smell toasty.
- Add the ginger, garlic and ya cai and stir constantly for 30 to 40 seconds.
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Ready when: Chilies are a deeper red-brown and the garlic smells fragrant but is not browned
Tip: If the garlic starts to brown too fast, lift the wok off the heat for a few seconds.
Toss the beans together
- Return the beans to the wok and turn the heat to high.
- Add the wine, soy sauce and sugar mixture and toss for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Keep tossing until the liquid has evaporated and the beans look glossy and coated with the ya cai and aromatics.
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Ready when: No liquid pools in the wok and the beans are hot and glossy
Tip: Taste a bean before adding any salt. The ya cai and soy sauce usually provide enough.
Finish and serve
- Turn off the heat.
- Sprinkle in the ground Sichuan peppercorns, the scallion and the sesame oil, then toss for 10 seconds.
- Transfer to a warm platter and serve right away, while the beans are hot and blistered.
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Ready when: The beans smell strongly of toasted peppercorn and sesame
Tip: Add the ground peppercorns off the heat to keep their aroma and tingle bright.
Good to know
Tips
- Fry the beans until they are properly wrinkled. The wrinkling is what concentrates their flavor and gives the dish its name.
- Keep the oil at about 350°F (175°C). Too cool and the beans get greasy, too hot and they char before they cook through.
- For a vegetarian-friendly dish this is already meatless. For a heartier version, stir-fry 3 ounces (85 g) of ground pork before the ya cai and return it to the wok with the beans.
- Start with 8 chilies for medium heat. Use fewer for mild and break them into pieces for more heat.
Make ahead
"Fry the beans (steps 1 and 4) up to 4 hours ahead and leave them at room temperature on paper towels. Finish steps 6 to 8 just before serving. You can also toast and grind the peppercorns up to 2 days ahead and keep them in a sealed jar."
Storage & reheating
"Best eaten immediately. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat in a hot dry skillet or wok for 2 to 3 minutes to bring back some of the blistered texture. Don't use the microwave if you can avoid it, because it makes the beans soft. Freezing isn't recommended, because the beans turn limp. Cooled frying oil can be strained and kept in the fridge for up to 1 month."
Substitutions
- ya cai (Tianjin or Sichuan preserved vegetable) → Zha cai (Sichuan pickled mustard tuber) or finely chopped capers. Zha cai gives a similar salty tang. If you use capers, rinse them and use 1 tablespoon.
- Shaoxing wine → Dry sherry. Use the same amount. Dry white wine will also work in a pinch.
- dried red chilies (such as chaotian or arbol) → Red pepper flakes. Use ½ teaspoon and add it with the garlic. Watch it closely because it burns faster than whole chilies.
- green beans → Asparagus or long beans. Cut long beans to 4-inch (10 cm) lengths. Fry thin asparagus for about 2 minutes.