Dongbei (Northeast China) Noodle Salad Recipe

When I was in the Yunnan province, I went to a restaurant that specializes in cuisine from northeast China (Dongbei region). Amidst the heavy meat dishes, the vegetarian sweet potato glass noodle salad really stood out to me. Every bite had the perfect balance of sweet, salty and sour flavors coupled with the fresh crunch of the vegetables. It’s a perfect side dish for a BBQ or pot luck, and can even be the star at the table!

Dongbei (Northeast China) Noodle Salad Recipe

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

• 1 300g (10 oz) packet sweet potato noodles
• 2.5 Tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 cup pressed tofu skin*, thinly sliced
• 1 cucumber, peeled and sliced into matchsticks
• 1 cup carrot, peeled and sliced into matchsticks
• 2 cups red cabbage, shredded
• Handful cilantro, chopped (optional)
• Dried chili flakes to taste (optional)

*If you can’t find tofu skin, you can substitute it with firm tofu cut into bite sized cubes and lightly sautéed in vegetable oil.

Sauce:

• 1.5 Tablespoon sugar
• ½ cup hot water
• 1 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 2.5 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar

Boil the noodles in water for 5 minutes until soft. Place the cooked noodles in a sieve and rinse with cold water. Add sesame oil to the noodles and mix well in large serving bowl. Set aside to cool down.

Boil the sliced tofu skin for 5 minutes and rinse with cold water. Use your fingers to pull apart each thin strip of tofu skin. Set aside to cool down.

In a small bowl, melt sugar with ½ cup of hot water. Add soy sauce and rice wine vinegar and stir together.

Mix the tofu skin, cucumber, carrots, red cabbage and cilantro with the sweet potato noodles. Add the sauce and toss everything together. Add chili flakes for a spicier salad. Refrigerate for about an hour before consuming so that the noodles can soak up the sauce.