Forget those “Chinese” chicken salads you had at chain restaurants in the ‘90s. The cold vegetable-filled dishes served in China (what we in the US would call “salads”) are flavorful, nuanced, and extremely varied. While they’re usually served as accompaniments to other dishes, many of these bright, punchy dishes can happily stand on their own—and an assortment of them, served together, makes a wonderful meal.
For this class, we’ll make a variety of salads that you can find in the southwestern provinces of Yunnan and Sichuan, a semi-tropical area with an abundance of unique ingredients. We’ll have a poached chicken salad flavored with lime juice, chiles, and lots of fresh herbs; a subtle combination of dense tofu and celery; a fragrant plate of blanched carrot greens with vinegar, and a deeply flavorful mix of rehydrated mushrooms and cilantro.