Maodou, the Beijing Local’s Summer Snack of Choice

Irene Li theBeijinger 2022-06-28

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When you think of Chinese food, what comes to mind? Is it a regular takeout with a sweet and sour sauce or perhaps deep-fried meat with a gravy based sauce? Well, although one might often associate Chinese food with meat dishes like braised pork or kung pao chicken, this really isn't what Chinese food is all about. In fact, the traditional Chinese diet is all about vegetables.

This is because people in the past really couldn't afford to eat much meat, so they often had to turn to everyday vegetables to stuff their stomachs with the necessary nutrients to survive. Among the many vegetables that Beijingers chose to satisfy their hungry bellies in the good old days, one dish, 毛豆 maodou, aka green soybeans, really stands out.

In English, maodou are more commonly known by their Japanese name, edamame. They can be dried, roasted, or even stir-fried. But here in the capital, we like to eat them straight out of the pod. Beijingers love the natural flavor of these green soybeans, they are slightly firmer than peas and truly taste delicious.

I remember when I was a kid, my family would serve these green soybeans late at night when we were watching sports. The most classic way of cooking them is the lao Beijing way, where you boil the beans and mix them with a bit of chili pepper, salt and soy sauce. You can also add a bit of Sichuan pepper if you want to give it an extra twist of spiciness. The last step is to refrigerate the beans until cooled and then pair them with an ice cold beer of your choice.

Many people might be intimidated by the seemingly complicated process of making Chinese dishes, but this dish is hands down one of the easiest to make, so here is a remodeled maodou recipe based off the one my mom used to make.

Ingredients
500 g of fresh green soy beans
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 slices of ginger
1/2 tsp Sichuan pepper corns
1 tsp Chinese five spice powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp Chinese soy sauce
1 tsp salt
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups of water

Method

Bring a pan of water to boil. Add the salt, Sichuan pepper corns, cumin, Chinese soy sauce, Chinese five spice powder and bay leaves to the water to season, then add the beans.
Return to a boil, add water, and then reduce to a low heat and cook for about five to ten minutes.
When the beans become soft and yellow, turn off the heat and let them cool down for one hour in the water to allow the spices to completely soak into the beans
Drain and then refrigerate for three to four hours until the beans are completely cooled down.

And just like that, this delectable summer treat is ready to be served!