How to Make Chinese Long Beans

Keeping in the tradition of not cutting long things during the New Year, this dish of Chinese long beans makes a perfect accompaniment on the dinner table. Serve this dish to your visiting family and friends and long luck will surely follow them through the new year.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 2 bunches Chinese long beans
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 4 Tbsp sesame seeds
• 2 tsp black sesame seeds
• 1 tsp whole black peppercorns
• ¼ tsp Szechwan peppercorns
• ½ c salted rice wine, also called aji-mirin
• ¼ c rice vinegar, also called sushi vinegar
• 3 Tbsp light soy sauce
• 4 Tbsp sesame oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Bamboo steamer
• Kitchen tongs
• Above ingredients
• Wok or large 12-inch saute pan

Chinese New Year Long Beans

1. 

   Wash the beans well and set aside.

2. Peel and finely mince the garlic and set aside.

3. Crush the 2 kinds of sesame seeds and peppercorns in a mortar with a pestle. If you have a spice grinder, you can use that to grind the spices instead. Grind the sesame seeds and peppercorns until the peppercorns are in small pieces roughly the size of a quarter of the original peppercorn. At that point, the sesame seeds should be fairly pulverized.

4. Add the garlic to the sesame mixture and divide the mixture into 2 equal halves and set aside.

5. In a flat bowl or plate, add half of the sesame mixture. Spread the mixture evenly over the bottom of the plate.

6. In a medium bowl, combine the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil and ¼ c of the rice wine. Mix thoroughly until the mixture is homogenous. Add half of the sesame mixture and taste. The mixture should be on the saltier side of the palate. Adjust the flavors to your tastes.

7. In a separate medium bowl, add enough rice wine, approximately ¼ cup, to wet the beans with.

8. One at a time, dip the beans into the wine, then lightly roll the bean into the sesame mixture. You want to have a light sprinkling of sesame, garlic and peppercorns on the outside of each bean.

9. Curl the coated beans inside a large-sized bamboo steamer. You can fit approximately half of the beans in one layer of the steamer by curling them along the edge of the steamer in piles. Once one layer is filled completely, fill the other layer, curling the beans on the opposite side of the steamer.

10. Heat a wok or a medium 10-inch sauté pan over medium heat. Add the liquid mixture to the wok and heat it to a boil.

11. Set the steamer over the boiling liquid with its cover on. Reduce the heat to a simmer over low heat. If you are using a sauté pan instead of a wok, set a wire rack in the bottom of the pan and set the steamer on top of the rack.

12. Steam the beans for approximately 8 minutes, then switch the 2 layers with beans inside so that the top layer is now the closest to the simmering liquid. Steam the beans for a further 8 minutes. Check the beans and they should be a bright green now. If they look a little undone, steam the beans for a further 2 to 3 minutes. Test one of the beans for flavor and doneness.

13. Lift the steamed beans out onto a platter using kitchen tongs. Salt and pepper the beans to taste. Spoon some of the steaming liquid over the beans.

14. Serve and enjoy.

Tips & Warnings

• You can find Chinese long beans at a well-stocked Asian market. If you can’t find long beans, domestic green beans are a suitable replacement.
• You can use a spice grinder to grind the peppercorns and sesame seeds for you. A spice grinder can be the same device as a mechanical coffee grinder. If you have already ground coffee in the same device, don’t use this as a spice grinder as the coffee flavor will permeate the spices–—even if you have cleaned the grinder.
• You can buy a mortar and pestle set at most kitchen supply stores. If you wish, you might want to try the Asian mortar and pestle set. This set differs from a western set because the mortar, or bowl, has fine grooves imprinted into the mortar, making it a little easier to grind round spices, like peppercorn.
• If you use an Asian mortar and pestle set, make sure to use a toothpick to clean the grooves after you use it.
• You can buy a bamboo steamer at most kitchen supply stores. They come in 8-inch, 10-inch and 12-inch sizes.
• If you don’t have a bamboo steamer you can use any large steamer to steam the beans. Just make sure the beans fit inside without being too crowded.

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