Szechuan-Style Hot-and-Sour Cabbage

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons chicken stock or low-sodium broth
• 2 tablespoons Chinese light soy sauce (see Note)
• 2 tablespoons Chinese mushroom soy sauce (see Note)
• 1/4 cup Chinese black vinegar (see Note)
• 1 tablespoon dark palm sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 medium heads green cabbage (4 pounds)—quartered, cored and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup canola or peanut oil
• 4 whole dried Chinese red chiles, broken in half, plus more crumbled, for garnish
• 2 teaspoons whole Sichuan peppercorns
• Salt

Steps

1. In a small bowl, combine the chicken stock, soy sauces, vinegar, sugar, ginger, garlic and cornstarch; whisk to blend.
2. In a pot of salted boiling water, cook the thickest pieces of cabbage for 1 minute; add the remaining cabbage and cook for 30 seconds longer. Drain and transfer to a bowl of ice water to cool; drain and pat dry.
3. In a wok, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil until shimmering. Add half of the broken dried red chiles and 1 teaspoon of the Szechuan peppercorns and stir until fragrant, 10 seconds. Add half of the cabbage and stir-fry over high heat until charred in spots, 5 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons of the soy sauce mixture and cook, tossing, until the liquid has been absorbed, 1 minute. Add 2 more tablespoons of the soy sauce mixture and stir-fry until absorbed; repeat one last time, then transfer the cabbage to a bowl. Repeat with the remaining oil, dried chiles, Szechuan peppercorns, cabbage and soy sauce mixture.
4. Return the first batch of cabbage to the wok and cook until all of the cabbage is nicely glazed. Season with salt, transfer to a platter and garnish with the crumbled dried chile peppers. Serve.