Chinese-style Lettuce with Garlic Sauce
This Chinese-style Lettuce with Garlic Oyster Sauce is a tasty and easy vegetable side dish you can put together in 15 minutes. A little chili bean paste will add a mild heat to the dish, but you can leave it out for a non-spicy version.
If you haven’t tried cooked lettuce, I think you will find this dish quite interesting. It features blanched lettuce dressed in a savory and umami garlic oyster sauce.
I recommend using romaine. Once cooked, it will have a crisp texture with a mild sweetness. Its natural bitterness will no longer be noticeable.
The easy garlic sauce is composed of typical aromatics and Chinese seasonings:
- aromatics: garlic, ginger and scallion
- seasonings: oyster sauce, light soy sauce, doubanjiang (chili bean paste), sugar, and toasted sesame oil
You can leave out the chili bean paste if you want to keep the dish non-spicy or if you don’t have it on hand. It is also okay if you don’t have toasted sesame oil.
For a vegetarian version, you can try using vegetarian oyster sauce/stir-fry sauce.
Essential Tips
This blanched romaine with garlic sauce is very quick and easy to make. It is a great dish for those who are beginners in Asian cooking, besides this lotus root soup, lemongrass chicken stir-fry, and tomato omelet.
To cook the romaine, blanch it in plenty of water. Make sure to use a large pot and bring the water to a boil over high heat. Cook in batches if needed. Then immediately transfer the lettuce to a bowl of iced water to stop the cooking process so that it will stay crisp and green.
When making the garlic sauce, you should use medium heat to sautรฉ the aromatics to bring out their fragrance without burning them. Then add the seasonings and cook until the sauce starts to simmer.
Now, all you need to do is transferring the blanched lettuce to a serving plate and drizzling the sauce over it. Enjoy!
Please find the full instructions in the recipe card below. I look forward to hearing what you think about this lettuce with chili garlic sauce recipe.
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Chinese-style Lettuce with Garlic Sauce
Ingredients
- 10.5-12 oz romaine lettuce
- cooking oil
- 3/4 tablespoon minced ginger
- 1 tablespoon thinly sliced white parts of scallions
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon doubanjiang (chili bean paste)
- 1/2 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons light soy sauce (or regular soy sauce)
- 1/8 teaspoon granulated sugar (more to taste)
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil (optional)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Then add romaine and blanch briefly, about 20 seconds. Immediately transfer the lettuce to a bowl of iced water to stop the cooking process. Then place romaine in a colander to drain excess water.
- Place a pan over medium heat and add some cooking oil to coat the bottom, about 1 tablespoon. Add the minced ginger and sautรฉ for a minute until fragrant. Then add the white parts of scallions and garlic and sautรฉ for another minute.
- Add doubanjiang to the pan, then stir and cook until fragrant and the oil looks red. Add oyster sauce and soy sauce and give everything a stir.
- Add water and sugar. Stir and bring everything to a simmer. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking. Stir in sesame oil and turn off the heat.
- Arrange blanched lettuce on a serving plate. Drizzle the garlic sauce over the vegetables and serve right away.
Notes
Nutrition
