Making sour pickled beans is easy and within days they are ready. I divide the beans into two portions and stir-fry the first portion with chillies and onions for a quick vegetarian dish.

Snake beans are simply salted and allowed to ferment given them a tangy taste whilst they remain slightly crunchy. I can’t help but think of sauerkraut and imagine the sour string beans would work equally well with pork or simply fried with dried chillies and onions.

description Traditionally packed in an earthenware jar, it is also known as Dong cai. The preserved cabbage is made from the distinctive long narrow Chinese cabbage grown in the Jinghai area. The cabbage is savoury and salty – the brownish flakes are added to soups, fried rice, meat (particularly pork), noodles, or vegetables. substitutes None [...]

description Tea is not only drunk but also eaten in Burma. The leaves are fermented and pickled then served with an assortment of crispy chickpeas, broad beans, roasted peanuts, fried garlic, sesame seeds, dried shrimp, chillies and lime juice. Similar to a thote, it is served separately so that each person can combine the ingredients [...]