"Serving stir-fried potatoes with rice defies culinary logic for some, but it should come as no surprise that this carb-on-carb union offers a meal high in both comfort and happiness. Across Asian cuisines potatoes are frequently enjoyed with a bowl of rice: There’s the Tibetan dish alu sipsip, which features shredded potatoes stir-fried with green peppers; the homestyle Korean banchan gamja bokkeum, a similar dish of pan-fried potato strips; and there are myriad Indian stir-fried potato dishes.
This recipe is based on the Sichuan dish qiang chao tu dou si, shredded potatoes stir-fried with chiles and Sichuan peppercorns and finished with sharp black vinegar (though it’s worth noting that stir-fried potatoes in various preparations are eaten throughout China). It may sound counterintuitive to talk about crisp-tender potatoes, but that’s exactly the result you're looking for here. Stir-frying the potato strips will temper their raw bite, but they should retain some defined crunch. Slice the potatoes as uniformly as possible to ensure they cook evenly and give them a quick soak to wash away some of the starch to encourage crisp sticks rather than gluey ones. This dish can be made with any type of large potato—quick cooking at high heat means that even starchy potatoes like russets won’t fall apart." —Hetty McKinnon
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What you’ll need
Mandoline
$57 $54 At Amazon
Large Straight-Sided Skillet
$200 At Amazon
Chef's Knife
$34.53 At Amazon
Cutting Board
$10 At IKEA
Recipe information
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
1¼
2
4
1
4
2
1
1¼
Preparation
Step 1
Cut a thin slice from base of each potato. Stand potatoes on flat bases and slice lengthwise into ⅛"-thick planks. Working with a few planks at a time, stack potatoes and slice into long ⅛"-thick matchsticks. (Alternatively, use a mandoline fitted with the julienne attachment.) Place in a large bowl and pour in cold water to cover; let soak 10 minutes. Swish potatoes around with your hands to release some starch, then drain well and pat dry.
Step 2
Heat oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high. Cook chiles and Sichuan peppercorns, stirring constantly, until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 20 seconds. Immediately add potatoes; cook, tossing constantly, until potatoes are wilted and crisp-tender but not browned, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in scallions, vinegar, and salt.
Step 3
Transfer stir-fry to a plate and top with cilantro. Serve with rice.
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Reviews (3)
Back to TopI lived with a roommate during covid who is from Sichuan province and a fantastic cook. These potatoes quickly became a beloved staple in our house back then, and I was happy to see them here on BA! My former roommate approved of the recipe, though suggested swapping the salt for soy sauce. I also cooked them for much longer than 5 minutes as others mentioned. Altogether they were easy, came out fantastic, and I will definitelybe making them very often!
Morgan
Germany
3/11/2024
Needs more sauce, came out pretty dry overall. 5 mins was definitely not long enough on medium high in my wok, which could, of course, be due to the thickness of my potatoes. Ended up being closer to 12. Added carrots in as well to give the dish another dimension but not veer too far off the path
Anonymous
Portland, OR
5/16/2023