Name: Kung Pao Lotus Root
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 400 g Lotus root ( , peeled and cut into 1 cm thick pieces); 2 garlic cloves ( , sliced); 1 small thumb ginger ( , sliced); 1/2 cup of toasted or fried skinless peanuts; 4 scallions ( , white part and green part separated); 6-10 dried chili peppers ( , change the amount according how hot you wish it to be); 2 tbsp. cooking oil; 15-20 whole Sichuan peppercorns; 1/2 tbsp. dark soy sauce; 1 tbsp. light soy sauce; 1 tsp. salt; 1 tbsp. vinegar; 1/2 tsp. sugar; 1 tsp. sesame oil; 1 tbsp. cornstarch; 2 tbsp. water

A great vegan choice of the famous Kung Pao Chicken--great flaov Kung pao lotus roots.

Lotus root is my husband's favorite vegetable as he is from Hubei province, where lotus root dominate the market in this season. It is the stem of the plant lotus. You may heard of the beautiful lotus flower. It has a crunchy texture with sweet-tangy flavor and extremely in China. It can be quite expensive due to the difficulties of pulling it out from the muds. The common cooking ways of lotus root in Chinese cuisine include stir-frying, stewing in soups or make salads. It goes unbelievable well with various Szechuan sauces.

Kung pao sauce, famous because of the universal chicken dish--kung pao chicken is a well balanced spicy taste used in Sichuan cuisine. Besides kung pao chicken, we widely use it in our daily cooking with several other chicken substitutes (mushrooms, potatoes, tofu and lotus root used in this recipe).

There are two ways of pre-cook the lotus root. You can cook them in boiling water for 2-3 minutes and drain to get a very crunch and crisp texture of the final dish or you can choose to fry them firstly to slightly soften the slices. But I still recommend the second method as it can create very small holes on the surface, which further help to absorb the flavors.

Ingredients

400g Lotus root, peeled and cut into 1 cm thick pieces
2 garlic cloves, sliced
1 small thumb ginger, sliced
½ cup of toasted or fried skinless peanuts
4 scallions, white part and green part separated
6-10 dried chili peppers (change the amount according how hot you wish it to be)
2 tablespoons cooking oil
15-20 whole Sichuan peppercorns

Stir fry Sauce
½ tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vinegar
½ teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil

Water starch
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons water

Instructions

Peel the skins and then cut lotus root into 1cm thick pieces.

Heat up oil in wok or pan, and fry peanuts until crisp firstly.

Then fry the lotus root slices for 2-3 minutes until soft and slightly browned on the edges. Transfer out and keep the oil.

Heat oil in wok and fry garlic, ginger, dried pepper, Sichuan peppercorn and scallion sections over slow fire until aroma.

Place cooked lotus root pieces in and stir in stir-fry sauce.Simmer for 1 or 2 minutes over slowest fire; add water starch and continue cooking until the sauce is well thickened.Add toasted peanuts and give a big stir-fry to mix everything well.

Garnish chopped scallion white and serve with steamed rice.