Pickled Radish

Daikon salted to draw its water out, then dressed sweet and sour and eaten within the week.

Vegan.

Ingredients

• 600 g daikon radish, peeled
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 5 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 dried red chilli, broken open

Method

1. Cut the daikon into batons about the thickness of a finger. Thicker and the middle stays raw-tasting; thinner and it goes floppy.
2. Toss with the salt and leave in a colander for 30 minutes. A lot of water will come out — daikon is mostly water and this is the step that decides whether the result snaps or sags.
3. Squeeze the batons firmly in your hands, a handful at a time, and discard what runs out.
4. Stir the vinegar and sugar together until the sugar has dissolved, then add the sesame oil and the chilli.
5. Pour it over the radish, turn it through, and refrigerate at least two hours.
6. This one is not a keeper. It is best on the second day and noticeably softer by the fifth, so make it in small amounts.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under China · All recipes