Double-Cooked Yard Long Beans

This dish may look very simple, but this is a very tasty and delicious dish. A dish of the Sichuanese people in China, and it is named Double-Cooked because the beans are first fried until tender and then cooked again with the seasoning and sauce.

This is quite "addictive"! Everyone keeps on spooning the beans off the plate and very soon the plate is empty!

The recipe uses preserved mustard cabbage, but since I have this packet of preserved szechuan mustard, I used that instead. There are various brands in the market, but I like this the most. They are not too salty, and can be eaten straight right from the packet. I would usually have this with white porridge. I like it when it is cooked with some minced meat and served over steamed white tofu, here, delicious with rice. There are many ways of using this veggie for various cooking, will share them in the future.

Just chopped them up coarsely for this dish. 

Long beans or french beans can be used for this dish. Here I have used long beans. The recipes calls for the beans to be deep-fried in quite a lot of oil. To avoid using lots of oil, I just heat up about 2-3 tablespoons of oil and stir-fry the beans over high heat for about 4-5 minutes, in two batches, until cooked but still crunchy. The beans are then put aside. The minced meat are then stir-fried in a little oil until cooked, then the szechuan mustard and chopped spring onion are added in, stir-fried over high heat until fragrant. The beans are then added in together with the seasonings to taste. Stir everything to combine and serve immediately.

Very easy, quick and delicious! Love the crunchy bite of the long beans and the szechuan mustard. This is one dish that will be repeated in my kitchen!

I'm sharing this with :
See Ya In The Gumbo hosted by Ms. enPlace
Recipe Box hosted by Bizzy Bakes
Food on Friday : Mustard hosted by Carole's Chatter


Double-Cooked Yard-Long Beans
(adapted from "The Food of China")
1 kg yard-long beans or French beans, trimmed (I used about 500-600gm long beans)
150gm minced ground pork or beef
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1-1/2 tablespoons Shao Xing rice wine
1/2 teaspoon roasted sesame oil
oil for deep-frying
5 tablespoons finely chopped preserved mustard cabbage (I use one packet ready-to-eat preserved Szechuan mustard, 70gm)
3 spring onions (scallions), finely chopped
1-1/2 teaspoons sugar (I use just a pinch of sugar)

1. Diagonally cut the beans into 5cm (2inch) pieces.
2. Lightly chop the meat with a cleaver until it goes slightly fluffy. Put the meat in a bowl, add 1 teaspoon of the soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of the rice wine and the sesame oil and stir vigorously to combine.
3. Fill the wok one quarter full of oil. Heat the oil to 180C (350F), or until a piece of bread fries golden brown in 15 seconds when dropped in the oil. Add a third of the beans, covering the wok with the lid as they are placed in the oil to prevent the oil from splashing. Cook for 3-1/2 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly, until they are tender and golden brown at the edges. Remove with a wire sieve or slotted spoon and drain. Reheat the oil and repeat with the remaining beans. Pour the oil from the wok, leaving 1 tablespoon. (my method : heat up 2 tablespoons oil until very hot, add in half of the beans and stir-fry over high heat for 5 minutes, remove to a plate. Repeat with remaining beans)
4. Reheat the reserved oil over high heat until very hot, add the meat and stir-fry until the colour changes, mashing and chopping to separate the pieces of meat. Push the meat to the side and add the preserved mustard cabbage and spring onion. Stir-fry over high heat for 15 seconds, or until fragrant. Add the beans with the remaining soy sauce and rice wine, sugar and 1 tablespoon of water, and return the meat to the centre of the wok. Toss lightly to coat the beans with the sauce.

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