Sichuan dry-fried green beans (gan bian si ji dou) — green beans fried in a wok with abundant oil until they blister and shrivel, then tossed with ya cai, ground pork, and Sichuan chilli — achieve their characteristic wrinkled, slightly chewy texture through a technique of deep-frying the beans in hot oil before the final flavouring. The deep-frying removes most of the surface moisture and produces the blistered skin that no stir-fry or blanching can replicate.
- **The oil fry:** Beans in hot oil (175°C) for 2–3 minutes until they blister and begin to wrinkle — the surface dehydrates while the interior remains cooked through. - **The drain:** Beans removed and drained of oil on a rack before the final wok toss. - **The final toss:** The oil-fried beans quickly tossed in a dry wok with ya cai (Yibin preserved vegetables), a small amount of ground pork fried dry, and the final seasonings. - **The texture target:** The finished bean should have a wrinkled, slightly chewy skin with a tender interior — not crunch (that is a different preparation), not soft (that is overcooked).
Dunlop