Chinese Spicy Sour Potatoes. A delicious shredded potato dish with a spicy, salty, vinegar flavours that hits the spot! Easy to make with minimal ingredients! This is also vegan.
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What are Chinese Spicy Sour Potatoes?
Chinese Spicy Sour Potatoes (aka Suan La Tu Dou Si (酸辣土豆丝) features tender shredded potatoes stir-fried in a scrumptious spicy salt and vinegar sauce with aromatics! It's a unique and delicious Chinese potato dish that is intriguing with its flavor profile. This Asian potato dish originates from Sichuan, China.
They almost taste like salt and vinegar chips with a hint of spice from the red chilis. If you can't tolerant spice, omit the red chilies. This side dish is easy to make with simple ingredients and serves well as a side dish and 30 minutes!
In traditional Chinese spicy and sour potatoes, they use Sichuan peppercorns and black vinegar. However, I omitted this from the recipe as it's spicy enough with the red chillies and I used white vinegar to make this accessible and approachable for all!
Ingredients
Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
- Small-medium russet potatoes or yellow potatoes
- Red chili: any large red chili that you enjoy
- Fresh garlic
- White granulated sugar: to balance out the flavors! Don't skip.
- Salt
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce. If you’re gluten-free, substitute with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce of your choice.
- White vinegar: or substitute with Chinese black vinegar, rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- Sesame oil: if you're allergic, omit completely
- Neutral oil: like avocado oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil or canola oil with a high smoke point. Avoid olive oil or any heavy scented oils with a low smoke point.
- Green onions: garnish
Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients.
Expert Tips
- Use russet potatoes for best results. I find this breed of potato makes for a tender cut when they're stir fried.
- Use a mandolin slicer if you have one. This cuts down on the preparation time but if you don't, you can just use a sharp knife.
- Taste test the potatoes after 6 minutes of cooking to check consistency. This allows for perfectly cooked potatoes that suits your taste buds as you don't want undercooked or overcooked potatoes.
- Dry the potato shreds well by shaking out excess water and using paper towel to dry them.
- Don't add the vinegar at the start and add at the end or you will burn off all the vinegar and it won't taste as sour.
How to make Chinese Spicy Sour Potatoes
Slice & Soak Potatoes
Slice peeled potatoes into thin slices at ½-cm wide to ensure a quicker cooking process. Soak potato slices in cold water for a couple of minutes and strain the excess starch. Shake out as much excess water as possible and dry the potatoes with a clean paper towels.
Stir-Fry Aromatics
Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium-high heat. Then fry garlic and red chilli. Tip: turn on the stove and avoid inhaling the red chilis as they can cause you to cough uncontrollably.
Toss in Potato Slices
Add shredded potatoes and toss with aromatics.
Season & Toss
Season with salt, regular soy sauce, sugar, and sesame oil. Mix well. Cook for 6-8 minutes until potatoes are tender to taste. Be careful not to overcook them or they will soften and loose their crispness.
Add Green Onions & Vinegar
Finally add green onions and white vinegar. Toss again and serve hot to enjoy!
Storage & Reheating
Leftovers will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat, microwave for 2-3 minutes until hot or reheat in a pan on medium heat.
📖 Recipe
Quick & Easy Chinese Spicy Sour Potatoes
Ingredients
- 4 small-medium russet potatoes peeled
- ⅓ cup green onion sliced into 1 inch pieces
- 1 red chilli sliced (omit if you prefer no spice)
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- 1 tablespoon regular soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon white granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoon white vinegar or sub with Chinese black vinegar, rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Slice peeled potatoes into thin slices at ½-cm wide to ensure a quicker cooking process. Tip: if you have a mandolin slicer, carefully use that for a quicker preparation. Soak potato slices in cold water for a couple of minutes and strain the excess starch. Shake out as much excess water as possible and dry the potatoes with a clean paper towels.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium-high heat. Then fry garlic and red chilli. Tip: turn on the stove and avoid inhaling the red chilis as they can cause you to cough uncontrollably.
- Add shredded potatoes and toss with aromatics.
- Season with salt, regular soy sauce, sugar, and sesame oil. Mix well. Cook for 6-8 minutes until potatoes are tender to taste. Be careful not to overcook them or they will soften and loose their crispness.
- Finally add green onions and white vinegar. Toss again and serve hot to enjoy!
Alexandra
The flavours with the potatoes are fantastic - one of the most unique dishes I have ever tried! And SO delicious!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
I love how this recipe only requires 30 minutes and the vinegar really give these potatoes a fun bite of flavor! 💕💕
Sherri
Adding to my must-try list for sure! My husband is a huge fan of salt and vinegar chips and I am all about anything potatoes so this would be perfect for us! 🙂
Rebecca Dillon
This looks great! What a wonderful side or snack!
Katherine | Love In My Oven
Ooh how perfectly crispy and delicious! I love these potatoes! You always make my mouth water, Christie!
Michelle | Sift & Simmer
What an interesting dish! I LOVE black vinegar and sichuan peppercorns, so I'll have to try it out!
Never Ending Journeys
What a tasty idea! I bet the red chili really took these potatoes to a whole new level. My favorite sauce is sriracha, so I'd definitely love to try this flavorful chili-spiced dish!
Josiah - DIY Thrill
This looks like such a delicious potato dish!