Hello everybody, welcome to this episode of Amanda Tastes.
Today I am going to show you an easy lazy and no fail recipe, that is a Chinese summer cold rice noodle dish, Liangpi.
The most important part in Liangpi is hot chili oil, so let's do it first.
We will need toasted white sesame seeds, chili flakes, star anise, szechuan pepper, vegetable oil, and some salt and vinegar.
First off, add a pinch of salt in chili flakes and mix well.
Add in toasted white sesame on top.
Next, heat oil in a sauce pan.
I am using canola oil here, but you can use any kind of flavor-less oil.
When the oil is hot, add in szechuan pepper and star anise to infuse.
Let their aroma come out as the temperature goes higher.
Take the spices out before they get burned, and pay attention not to overcook, otherwise they will become bitter.
Keep cooking until you can see the oil starting to smoke.
Now remove the pan from the stove and wait for about 2 mins.
Wait until the oil is not smoking anymore, and then slowly pour the hot oil over our spice mixture, and you will see they start boiling in the bowl.
Quickly mix them up with a spoon.
Here is a tip. Add in about a tsp. of vinegar in it while the oil is still hot.
Under a very high temperature, the acetic acid in vinegar will evaporate, leaving only a vinegar fragrance. That will make chili oil infused better with more flavor.
Once it's done, you can store hot chili oil in a clean glass jar sealed in the fridge for 1-2 months.
It's convenient, you can use it with noodles, or as a dressing and dipping sauce for cold dishes. If you want some heat in a plate, just use it.
Now, let's make liangpi, the rice noodles.
You will need wheat starch, flour and water.
Traditionally, you will first knead flour into a dough, and then "rinse" the dough in water to extract starch from flour.
And then, steam the starch-paste into the final rice noodles, liangpi. Doing all these preparations at home is very time consuming and pretty tedious.
So, I have a simpler and lazier recipe. I will use wheat flour, because wheat flour is the starch extract from plain flour.
However, using only wheat flour may result in a softer texture, so I will add in a small amount of plain flour in it.
Add in a pinch of salt, and combine two kinds of flour together.
Slowly stir in water, and mix well.
Mix it into a thin and smooth starch liquid mixture.
Prepare a little oil on a small plate and set aside.
Use a brush, and lightly oil another plate.
Ladle some starch liquid on it. Remember, you need to thoroughly stir the starch liquid before you put it on the plate, since starch is heavier than water. So make sure you stir and mix well first, and then pour on the plate.
Tilt the plate and help starch liquid spread evenly in a thin layer, about 2mm thick.
Set the plate in the microwave.
Cook for about 80-90s over high heat.
Take it out, and touch the center. If it's not sticky and watery to touch, then your liangpi is done.
Brush another layer of oil on.
Use a spatula to help you scrape off the starch sheet.
Gently tear it from the plate.
Follow the same process to make the other liangpi sheets one by one.
Make sure to stir the starch liquid before you pour it on a plate, since starch is heavier and it can easily go down to the bottom of the bowl.
Besides cooking on a plate, you can also use a small roasting pan, as long as it has a flat bottom and it’s microwave safe.
Now they are done. Pile them up.
Let them rest to cool, and then cut into stripes.
I have already oiled each of the starch sheet beforehand, so they won't stick together.
Use your hands to separate them apart.
It is done. Now, let's prepare the sides.
We have bean sprouts, shredded cucumber, minced garlic with water, soy sauce, black rice vinegar, chopped coriander, chili oil, sesame oil, and steamed gluten.
Press a clove of garlic, and add a tbs. of water, and there you will have minced garlic with water.
As for the steamed gluten, traditionally it's served with liangpi. Since we are following a lazy recipe here, so you can buy it from a grocery store.
It's pretty accessible, so you can find it in almost every grocery store.
Soak steamed gluten in water, and tear them into small pieces. Give it a blanch, and it's done.
Blanch bean sprouts as well. Now, let's mix everything together.
Put cooked bean sprouts, shredded cucumber, steamed gluten, black rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, hot chili oil,
and coriander together. Mix well, and now it's ready to serve.
This is a very simple version of a liangpi recipe, as long as you have a microwave.
And you don’t have to knead, to rinse and to steam anything, saving you a lot of time.
The texture is very much alike. With homemade hot chili oil, it's a little sour and spicy with good aroma, together this dish is very appetizing.
I hope you enjoy this episode of Amanda Tastes.
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