Growing up, our next door neighbor would make these pickles every summer. My mother had gotten the recipe from her, and I’ve made only one minor change. The original recipe called for the use of Alum directly in the brine, something that is no longer recommended practice in pickling. Instead, I use Pickling Lime (which serves the same purpose) in a bath first, which stiffens the tomatoes but is washed off. These are not shelf stable pickles, and must be refrigerated.

Ingredients

Liquid

1. 3 qts. Water
2. 1 qt good Cider vinegar
3. 1 cup Kosher salt (233 grams of any non-iodized salt)

In Sterilized Jar                

1. 1 t pickling spice
2. 1 T honey
3. 1 dried hot chile pepper
4. 1 bay leaf
5. 2 – 3 pieces peeled raw garlic

Method

1. Bring liquid to a rolling boil. 
2.  Place dry ingredients in each sterile quart jar
3. Scrub green tomatoes. Cut into halves or quarters
4. Add tomatoes to jars.
5. Pour in boiling liquid to top of jar. Seal.
6. Let cool to room temperature.
7. Refrigerate. These are not shelf stable.

Additional Notes

For crisper pickles, use a Pickling Lime (like Mrs. Wages) on the tomatoes prior to starting. Follow the instructions on the package of Pickling Lime for proper handling.         

This is a quick spicy noodle dish that is good hot or cold, and quite low in carbohydrates because of the use of the Konjaku based Shirataki noodles.

Sauce Ingredients:

• Sichuan Pepper Chili Oil (either home made or a high quality commercial)
  • 2 tsp oil
  • 2 tsp solids
• 1 TBSP Chinese Preserved Vegetable
• 1 TBSP + 1 tsp Toasted Sesame Paste
• 1 TBSP Chinkiang Vinegar
• 1 TBSP + 1 tsp Chinese Light Soy Sauce
• Pinch salt (or more to taste)

Other Ingredients:

• 1 TBSP Cooking Oil
• 16-20 oz ground meat
• 3 packages of Angel Hair Shirataki (Konjaku) noodles (7-8oz each)

Instructions:

Combine all of the sauce ingredients into a small bowl, and mix well, setting aside.

Cut the packages of noodles into thirds, and rinse well in a colander or other strainer, and set aside to continue to drain.

Place a sauce pan large enough for all the ingredients over a medium-high heat, and add the oil. Add the ground meat to the hot oil, and stir fry until cooked through and crumbled.

Add the drained noodles to the meat, followed by the sauce mixture. You may want to use some of the noodles to help get the sauce out of the bowl.

Cook over medium-high heat until the liquid has cooked down, and when you move the noodles around the pan with the spoon you see at most a little oil on the cleared sections of the pan.

Remove from the heat and serve immediately, or refrigerate to eat later.

Ingredient Notes:

Sichuan Chili Oil: This high quality option is commercially available, or you can make your own (e.g. this recipe from All Under Heaven: Recipes from the 35 Cuisines of China).

Chinese Preserved Vegetable: There are any number of options, I used this variety, which is available at specialty grocery markets or from Amazon.

Sesame Paste: Tahini won’t work. You need a toasted sesame paste , either commercially available (this is a superb option), or again, home made by grinding toasted sesame seeds.

Chinkiang Vinegar: I have not had the opportunity to try this one from Mala Market, but other varieties should be readily available at specialty grocery stores or from Amazon.

Chinese Light Soy Sauce: There is enough of a difference between Chinese and Japanese soy sauce that you should be sure to get a quality Chinese version. This bottle, again imported by The Mala Market is extraordinary, but you can also use Pearl River Bridge if you are looking for a cheaper alternative.

Shirataki Noodles: I use this brand, shipped from Amazon, as it is shelf stable and therefore doesn’t take up room in the refrigerator.

Hot and Sour Soup

I was surprised to see that I had never migrated this over from my old web site. In 1997, we were living in rural Central Virginia, just outside of Charlottesville, and I had not been able to find any place that had a decent Hot and Sour Soup. So I scoured the Internet for some ideas, and then spent the weekend mixing and matching and tweaking until I ended up with exactly what I wanted. A complex sour soup, with a slow building relatively mild heat.

Base Ingredients:

• 40-42oz of Chicken Broth
• 1 lb Extra Firm Tofu
• 3 oz sliced bamboo shoots or sour bamboo shoots
• 1/2 oz (approx) dried Cloud Ears
• 1/3 cup sliced cooked meat (optional)
• Lotus Buds to taste (optional)

Seasonings:

• 1 TBSP Sugar
• 1 TBSP Dark Soy Sauce
• 3 TBSP Red Wine Vinegar
• 3 TBSP Lemon Juice
• 3 TBSP Fish Sauce
• 3 TBSP Chinese Black Rice Vinegar
• 3 TBSP Corn Starch or Tapioca Starch
• 1/2 – 1 TBSP Salt (to taste, and depending on the saltiness of the stock)
• 3/4 tsp Ground Roasted Sichuan Peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp Ground Black Peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp Sesame Oil

Garnish:

• 1 large egg (beaten)
• 3 TBSP minced green onions (optional)

Instructions:

Set the cloud ears in luke warm water for 30 minutes to rehydrate. If you are using Lotus Buds, rehydrate them with the cloud ears. Once they have rehydrated, slice them (I find it easiest to hold them in a bunch, and then just slice across the mushrooms) if they are too large to eat comfortably. Slice the tofu (half an inch wide and high, and the length being half the width of the Tofu block works well), and combine the tofu, cloud ears, bamboo shoots, and the lotus buds or meat if you are using them, and put them aside in a bowl. You may find you have a little too much, if you do just set it aside for another batch or another recipe, and make a little less the next time. This is the place to experiment, all sorts of vegetables or meats could be added here.

In a bowl or liquid measure, combine all of the seasoning ingredients, and stir well. These are the most important ingredients, they are what give the soup its flavor. Do not substitute.

Bring the chicken stock to a boil over high heat, in a pan capable of holding about three times the volume of the chicken stock. Once the stock reaches a boil, add the bowl of chopped vegetables and meats, and again, let the soup come to a boil. You want to leave room for the seasonings and the garnish, so don’t overfill your pan. Once the soup again starts to boil, add in the seasonings (being sure to stir first, so that the corn starch doesn’t clump). While the soup again moves towards a boil, beat the egg in the same container you had the seasonings in (to get that last bit of flavor stuck to the sides) and mix in the green onions if you are using them. When the soup again reaches a boil, slowly spoon in the egg mixture. Turn the heat down to simmer, and serve.