Spicy Spicy Lotus!

If you don't like spicy, then this isn't a snack for you. For those that can take the heat, this makes a nice little side dish/snack. It's popular at the take-out stores called Duck Neck King (yes, they sell spicy duck neck). 

But today isn't about duck neck. Back to the lotus.

What you will need:

• Approximately 1 pound of Lotus root. You can buy the root and clean it up; however, I prefer (for ease and quality) the pre-sliced, boiled lotus roots packaged in a bag (like here)
• 1 teaspoon of minced ginger
• 15 dried chilies 
•  1 teaspoon of chopped garlic
• 1 tablespoon of hua jiao (very similar to or the same as a Sichuan peppercorn or Prickly-ash peppers. Don't worry too much, they are all similar enough).
• 3 whole ba jiao (star anise) broken up.
• 1 tablespoon of white sugar
• 2 tablespoons of black (Asian) vinegar
• 2 tablespoons of soy sauce 
• 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper
• 3/4 tablespoon of hot crushed chili powder (less if you prefer less spice)
• 2-3 tablespoons of vegetable oil (or olive oil works well, too)
• water

Preparation: 

1) Warm the oil, ginger, garlic, hua jiao, ba jiao, and the dried chilies in a medium to large frying pan. For your safety, do not let the oil get too hot as it will start popping!

2) As soon as you can smell a fragrance in your oil mix, dump the washed lotus into the frying pan. 

3) Add the other ingredients and add enough water to cover about half of the lotus.

4) Bring to a boil. Stir until most of the liquid has evaporated. You can choose to leave more or less water in the pan. The lotus can take a reasonable amount of boiling and remain crispy. 

5) Serve. I would probably serve it as a side dish. As a snack, it is often served cold. Warm or cold, it's a tasty, spicy snack.

On a side note: Xiao Pang is pretty good at preparing "clear fried" (清炒  which we will post about later) vegetables. He sometimes prepares the lotus this way. Liking my spice the way I do, though, I prefer this spicy snack :)