Quick-Pickled Radish Threads (Son Labu)

One of my favorite cookbooks is Beyond the Great Wall, a book written by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid. Both Alford and Duguid explore Chinese cuisine, but not the typical cuisine that most people know and eat. Instead, they explore the cuisines of the many minorities who live throughout China.  One of those minorities is the Tibetans, whose cuisine I too have expllored from time to time.  

Alford and Duguid provide several Tibetan recipes in their cookbook. However, this particular recipe -- Tenzin's Quick-Pickled Radish Threads -- caught my attention. It may have been the reference to Tenzin, as I was watching The Legend of Korra at the time. (The show has a character named Tenzin.) It may have also been the pickled radish threads. 

Radishes -- or labu as they are referred to in Tibetan -- are grown on the Tibetan plateau. Tibetan cooks use radishes in a variety of dishes, such as stews like Labsa and soups like Thukpa. 

But the root vegetable has a very special place on the Tibetan table, as a condiment. It's known as Son Labu or Son Labhu. The Tibetans use large, long white radishes, which resemble the daikon radish. Typically, the radish is thinly sliced, combined with other ingredients (which, as with many recipes, depends upon the cook), and then submerged in rice wine vinegar for the pickle.  

The picked radish recipe found in Beyond the Great Wall differs in that it calls for grating the radish, rather than slicing it. The recipe also caught my attention for another reason: namely, the use of Sichuan peppercorns. I have used this ingredient in the past, such as to make Togarashi, Jioma Jipian, and Qiatou Yi Nen.  The numbing properties of the peppercorns adds an unusual experience with dishes, which is something that I like when I am cooking and eating. The recipe calls not only for the use of Sichuan peppercorns, but also onions, scallions, garlic and ginger, all of which provide additional flavors to the pickled radish threads. 

Son Labu is an interplay between spicy, sour and salty. As with radishes generally, this condiment can be eaten by itself as a little snack or added to dishes, like a cold noodle soup or a stir fry beef. 

Finally, this particular quick-picked radish thread recipe comes with a story from Alford and Duguid about a Tibetan named Tenzin, who prepared this recipe for the authors. For that story, you will need to buy the book. 

QUICK PICKLED RADISH THREADS (SON LABU)

Recipe from James Alford and Naomi Daguid, Beyond the Great Wall at pg. 25

Ingredients:

• 1 pound daikon radish, peeled and coarsely grated or thinly sliced
• 2 medium scallions
• 1/2 small onion, cut into thin slices
• 2 tablespoons minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1 to 2 tablespoons minced garlic (optional)
• 1 teaspoon dry roasted Sichuan peppercorns, ground (optional)
• About 3 cups rice vinegar

Directions:

1. Prepare the radish. Place the radish, scallions, onions and ginger in a large bowl and toss to mix them well. Stuff half of the mixture in a sterilized 4 quart jar and add 1 tablespoon of the salt and garlic and/or Sichuan peppercorn if you wish. Add the remaining radish mixture and the second tablespoon of salt and pour on the vinegar, which should cover the mixture completely. Seal and shake the jar to distribute the vinegar well. 

2. Store the jar. Place in a sunny spot by the window for 2 to 4 days, giving the jar a shake occasionally to help blend the flavors. It is now ready to use. The pickle will keep indefinitely if well sealed and refrigerated.

3. Finish the dish. To serve, use a clean spoon or fork or chopsticks to lift out a clump of radish strands and place them in a condiment bowl. 

PEACE.