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Laba garlic (jade green vinegar garlic)
Green vinegar-pickled garlic
Laba suan 腊八蒜: Beijing's garlic cloves steeped in rice vinegar until they turn jade green
On Laba day, the eighth of the twelfth lunar month, Beijing families peel a jar of garlic, cover it with vinegar and leave it in a cold spot until New Year's Eve, when the cloves have turned a startling jade green. They are eaten with the jiaozi on New Year's Eve, a spoonful of the sharp, garlicky vinegar going into every dipping dish. The cloves lose their raw bite and become crunchy, mellow and sweet-sour. The green colour comes from natural compounds in the garlic reacting with the acid in the cold and is perfectly safe. The usual mistake is keeping the jar somewhere warm, where the garlic stays white; it needs to be below about 10 °C. Chef's tip: use firm, purple-skinned garlic, and leave the jar in the fridge door, which is cold but not too cold.
- Total time
- 15 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 10
Ingredients
- 10 ½ oz garlicabout 5 heads, cloves peeled
- 1 ¾ cups rice vinegaror a mild Chinese white vinegar
- 1 tbsp sugar (optional)optional, for a softer taste
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Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Peel the cloves of 10 ½ oz garlic and trim off the hard root ends. Rinse and dry completely with kitchen paper; water left on the cloves can spoil the jar.
Step 2: Put the cloves in a clean, dry glass jar. Stir 1 tbsp sugar into 1 ¾ cups rice vinegar if using, and pour it over so the garlic is fully covered.
Step 3: Close the jar and keep it in the fridge or another place below 50°F. Within 5–7 days the cloves start to turn green, and in 2–3 weeks they are a deep jade colour.
Step 4: Eat the cloves as a pickle with dumplings and noodles, and use the vinegar for dipping. Keep in the fridge for up to 3 months, always covered in vinegar. Never store garlic covered in oil the same way; vinegar keeps it safe, oil does not.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 25 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 5 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does laba garlic (jade green vinegar garlic) take?
- About 15 minutes in total.
- How many people does it serve?
- 10 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
- What can I use instead of rice vinegar?
- Cider vinegar with a pinch of sugar, same amount.
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