Description
In Halal (Qingzhen) cuisine where pork is forbidden, this is the premium sweet and sour alternative to Subuta. Mutton is coated in starch batter, deep-fried until shatteringly crispy, and flash-tossed in a translucent, sweet-sour black vinegar and soy glaze. A masterpiece of Beijing Imperial cuisine.
Restaurants serving Zhua Chao Yang Rou (Sweet and Sour Crispy Mutton)
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On this site you can check dictionary details and, later, places to buy or eat related items.
The Recipe section below is a general reference, not a recipe from the listed shops.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Mutton
- Potato starch
- Black vinegar
- Soy sauce
- Sugar
- Scallion
- Ginger
Instructions
- [Authentic Recipe]
- (Meat Prep) Slice fresh mutton (leg) slightly thick. Marinate heavily with soy, wine, and scallion-ginger juice to purge odor.
- (Batter Magic) Vigorously hand-massage (Zhua) the meat with [wet starch slurry], creating a thick, heavy batter.
- Drop pieces individually into 180°C oil. Deep-fry until the exterior balloons into a crispy golden crust, then remove.
- (Sauce) Mix black vinegar, soy, sugar, wine, and starch slurry in a 'golden ratio slightly favoring sweetness'.
- Heat a little oil in a wok, pour in the sweet-sour sauce.
- The second the sauce boils, thickens, and turns translucent amber, dump in the fried mutton.
- To NEVER kill the crispy batter, toss the wok just 2-
- times flash-fast (Chao) to glaze, and plate immediately.
Learn more Spice, substitutes, tips
Key spices
Deep sweet-sourness of black vinegar、Juicy mutton umami
Substitutes at Japanese supermarkets
(Substitute pork in Japanese sweet&sour recipes with lamb)
Pairing
Jasmine Tea / Shaoxing Wine
Trivia
[Trivia] 'Zhua' means hand-massaging the batter; 'Chao' means flash-frying. Legend says Empress Dowager Cixi of the Qing Dynasty ate this, praised it wildly, and elevated it to the pinnacle of Imperial Cuisine (one of the 'Four Great Zhua'). A highly prestigious Halal dish.
Eating tips & etiquette
[Unique Eating] Eat while hot. The outer batter gives a loud 'CRUNCH!', coated in a sticky sweet-sour glaze. Biting through it releases a 'fluffy', juicy rush of mutton flavor completely devoid of any wild odor.
Allergen
Mutton, Wheat (Soy sauce), Soybeans