Heilongjiang/Jilin/Liaoning — Northeast China's cold-climate fermentation tradition
Suan cai bai rou: Northeast China's iconic winter dish of fermented cabbage (suan cai) slow-simmered with fatty pork belly slices, served in an earthenware pot. The suan cai, made from naturally lacto-fermented napa cabbage, is the soul of the dish — providing essential acidity that cuts through the pork fat.
Sour, rich, clean, deeply savoury — the essential winter comfort food of Northeast China
{"Dongbei suan cai ferments for 2–3 weeks in cold conditions","Fermented cabbage must be rinsed before cooking — removes excess brine","Fatty pork belly is essential — lean meat dries out","Long simmer melds sour cabbage with rich pork fat"}
{"Add glass noodles (fen si) in the final 10 minutes — they soak up the flavourful broth","Dongbei version is unseasoned except salt — the suan cai provides all acidity","Often cooked on the table as a hot pot (huo guo) style shared dish"}
{"Using store-bought Korean kimchi — different fermentation, different flavour","Rinsing suan cai too much — removes desirable sour flavour","Using lean pork — lacks the fat needed to balance the acidity"}
Land of Fish and Rice — Fuchsia Dunlop