Qianlong's Cabbage (乾隆白菜)

Qianlong's Cabbage (乾隆白菜)

Qianlong's Cabbage (乾隆白菜) is a home-style vegetable dish at difficulty 2/5 (Easy), about 150 kcal. Qianlong's Cabbage is a classic Beijing-style cold dish featuring hand-torn cabb. Ingredients and step-by-step instructions are below, with notes for home cooking.

Difficulty

2 / 5

★★☆☆☆

Easy
Estimated Calories

150 kcal

Ingredients

  • Chinese Cabbage (Choose selected young inner yellow leaves; yellow hearts in winter are best)
  • Sesame Paste
  • Aged Vinegar (Recommendations: Zhenjiang Aromatic Vinegar or Shanxi Aged Vinegar)
  • White Sugar
  • Sesame Oil
  • Toasted White Sesame Seeds (Optional, for garnish)

Steps

  1. Take only the tender inner leaves of the Chinese cabbage (the yellow parts) and discard the hard ribs. Tear the leaves into fist-sized pieces by hand. **Do not cut with a knife** (torn surfaces are rougher and hold the sauce better).
  2. Rinse the torn cabbage leaves thoroughly and ensure they are completely drained of water. Residual moisture will cause the sauce to slide off.
  3. In a bowl, add 30g of sesame paste. **Add 45ml of aged vinegar first** and stir in one direction. Slowly dilute the paste until the mixture drips off the chopsticks in a thin thread. **Do not stir in circles**, as this causes the sesame paste to separate ("run out of oil").
  4. Add 5g of white sugar to the sauce and mix well; then add 1g of salt and mix well; finally add 5ml of sesame oil and mix well. (Seasonings must be added in batches and mixed separately to gauge the thickness while mixing).
  5. Drizzle the prepared sauce evenly over the cabbage leaves and gently mix with your hands so that every leaf is coated in sauce.
  6. Sprinkle with toasted white sesame seeds and serve. If time permits, let it **sit for 5 minutes** to marinate before eating.

Notes

Qianlong's Cabbage is a classic Beijing-style cold dish featuring hand-torn cabbage hearts tossed with a thick, rich sesame sauce. The texture is sweet, sour, crisp, and mellow, making it very appetizing. The cabbage is rich in vitamins and dietary fiber, while the sesame paste provides healthy fats and calcium, creating a refreshing and nutritious dish that cuts through grease. This dish requires no frying or boiling—just mixing the sauce is enough. It is very friendly for beginners and typically takes only 10 minutes from start to finish.

Est. Cooking Difficulty: ★★
Est. Calories: 150 kcal
Category: Cold Dish

Calculation:
Determine how many servings you want to make before cooking. One batch is perfect for 2 people.

Per Serving:
- Tender Chinese Cabbage Leaves: 300g
- Sesame Paste: 30g (approx. 2 tablespoons)
- Aged Vinegar: 45ml (approx. 3 tablespoons, vinegar to paste ratio approx. 3:2)
- White Sugar: 5g (approx. 1 teaspoon)
- Sesame Oil: 5ml
- Salt: 1g
- Toasted White Sesame Seeds: 3g (optional)

- Draining the water is crucial for the cabbage; the drier, the better. Wet leaves won't hold the sesame paste well, which will dilute the flavor of the dish.
- When making the sauce, the vinegar must "dissolve" the paste first. Add other ingredients one by one; do not pour everything in at once.
- Prefer canned Zhenjiang Aromatic Vinegar, which has the most suitable color and aroma. Do not use rice vinegar (too weak) or white vinegar (too light in color and taste).
- This recipe is the Sugar & Vinegar version. For a richer, rounder flavor, you can replace half of the white sugar with honey.

If you encounter issues or have improvements for the process described in this guide, please file an Issue or submit a Pull Request.

More in this category