Three Earthly Treasures (Di San Xian)
Potato, eggplant and pepper — the three "earthy treasures" that make Dongbei farmers rich and everyone happy.
The story
Di san xian is Northeast China's proudest vegetarian dish: the three vegetables that come "from the earth" fried until golden and glazed in a garlicky soy sauce. The pan version below skips the deep-fryer without skipping the flavor.
Ingredients (6 + pantry staples)
- Potatoes — 1 lb / 450 g, chunked
- Chinese or globe eggplant — 1 large, chunked
- Green bell pepper — 1, chunked
- Garlic — 3 cloves, minced
- Soy sauce — 2 tbsp
- Sugar — 1 tsp (counts here)
Pantry staples used (don't count toward the 6): cooking oil (4 tbsp), cornstarch (1 tbsp). Not stocked yet? See the pantry page.
Steps
- Pan-fry potatoes in 2 tbsp oil, covered, 8 minutes until tender and golden; remove.
- Eggplant and pepper in with the rest of the oil, 6–7 minutes until soft and charred in spots.
- Everything back with garlic, soy, sugar and a cornstarch slurry with 1/4 cup water; toss until glossy.
Swaps
Add tomato wedges for a juicier version. Serve over rice — it is a full vegetarian dinner.
More 30-minute dishes
Chaoshan Daikon & Pork Soup (Chao Shan Qing Tang)
The soup this whole site was built around: a whole chunk of pork and a daikon, half an hour, then celery and salt. That is the recipe.
Steamed Fish with Ginger & Soy (Qing Zheng Yu)
The Cantonese gold standard of "let the fish be fish" — steam 10 minutes, smother in hot oil and soy.
Corn, Carrot & Pork Soup (Yu Mi Hu Luo Bo Tang)
The sweetest soup in the Chinese canon — corn does all the flavor work while you do nothing.