Home-Preserved Chinese Leaf Mustard 自制雪菜

Combining preserved Chinese leaf mustard 雪菜, with pork or chicken either in a stir-fry 雪菜炒肉丝 or in noodle soups 雪菜肉丝面 are two widely-seen-and-heard Chinese dishes that incorporate preserved Chinese leaf mustard.

The vegetarian rendition of a preserved Chinese leaf mustard stir-fry is most popular with soy products e.g. edamame 雪菜炒毛豆 or firm tofu  雪菜炒豆干.

Day 2, homemade preserved Chinese leaf mustard, ready to use.

Past experiences do count. So when I chanced upon Gai Choy (芥菜, Jie Cai) in the Asian grocery store, making preserved Chinese leaf mustard came to mind. It is not going to be too difficult this time since I have done it before. All you need is the vegetable itself - Chinese leaf mustard; plus salt and time.




Homemade Preserved Chinese Leaf Mustard 自制雪菜
Rinse and clean the leaf mustard then air-dry for a few hours or use a kitchen paper to pad the leaves dry.

In a clean plastic bag or Ziploc bag, add 1/2 tsp of sea salt, then add the leaf mustard and sprinkle another 1/2 tsp of sea salt on the leaves and stems of the vegetable. Tightly seal or secure the vegetables (with salt) in the plastic bag, then smash the stems of the vegetable using flat side of cleaver, then try to break the fibers in the vegetables by squeezing the vegetables in the bag with your palm and fingers. This will release some liquid and moisture from the vegetables.

It should look like this before storing in air-tight container.



Chill overnight or at least 24 hours till the next day.

Here are some other earlier creations with Home-Preserved Chinese Leaf Mustard:
Homemade Preserved Chinese Leaf Mustard - First attempt
Preserved Chinese Leaf Mustard with Chicken
Preserved Chinese Leaf Mustard with Pan-Fried Tofu
Preserved Chinese Leaf Mustard Noodle Salad
Preserved Chinese Leaf Mustard Noodle Soup

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Tag: chinese leaf mustard

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