Pào cài

Served as an appetizer, palate freshener, or a side dish, pào cài is a Sichuan-style pickle made with various vegetables, mostly Chinese cabbage, carrots, mustard stems, long beans, daikon radish, turnips, cucumbers, ginger, and hot peppers.

In Sichuanese cuisine, these crunchy, tangy pickles are always on hand, and almost every family keeps a large clay pot in their kitchen, filled with a variety of seasonal vegetables in a simple water and vinegar brine seasoned with salt, sugar, and Sichuan peppercorns.

The sweet, sour, and spicy pào cài is most common in northern and western China, but is also easily found in restaurants across the country. It can be served with noodles or Chinese dumplings, but it is most often enjoyed with congee, a silky, savory, slow-cooked rice porridge which is as an everyday breakfast meal popular in China and many other Asian countries.