Main Page
National cuisine
Vegetables in sweet and sour sauce in Chinese

Chinese-Style Vegetables in Sweet and Sour Sauce

Bold, tangy, and colorful — made from everyday produce! These Chinese-style vegetables in sweet and sour sauce are a quick stir-braise of seasonal veggies finished with a bright, savory-sweet sauce. The dish comes together fast, it's naturally low in calories, and it's completely plant-based.

Alyonushka

Recipe author

Vegetables in sweet and sour sauce in Chinese

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Zucchini

Eggplant (small)

Bell pepper

Onion

Carrots

Ginger

Soy sauce

Apple cider vinegar

Sugar

Starch

Vegetable oil

Water

200

Salt

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 7 % 1 g

Fats 20 % 3 g

Carbohydrates 73 % 11 g

55 kcal

GI: 91 / 0 / 9

Cooking method

Cooking time: 35 min

Step 1:

How do you make Chinese-style sweet and sour vegetables? Start by gathering your ingredients. Almost any vegetables work here — I went with eggplant, zucchini, bell pepper, carrot, and onion. Green beans, peas, cauliflower, or broccoli would be great too. Rinse all the vegetables thoroughly under running water.
Step 2:

Set out the sauce ingredients too — cornstarch, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, sugar, salt, and oil. Any starch works; if you're out of apple cider vinegar, lemon juice or rice vinegar will do. Any neutral oil is fine, but a fragrant one like sesame oil adds extra flavor.
Step 3:

Cut the eggplant into large chunks — rounds or half-moons. Sprinkle with salt and let it sit for 10 minutes until it weeps liquid. The bitterness draws out along with that juice.
Step 4:

Meanwhile, cut the zucchini into large chunks about the same size as the eggplant.
Step 5:

Peel the carrot, onion, and bell pepper. Dice the carrot into medium cubes. Cut the pepper into wide, short strips. Halve the onion and slice it into half-moons.
Step 6:

Pour the oil into a deep skillet and heat it up. Pat the eggplant dry. Add the eggplant, carrot, and zucchini to the pan. Stir-fry over high heat, stirring often. Once the vegetables start to color, add the bell pepper and onion and fry for a few more minutes.
Step 7:

Turn the heat down, add a splash of hot water, and let the vegetables simmer. While they cook, make the sauce.
Step 8:

Peel the fresh ginger and grate it on a fine grater.
Step 9:

Stir the ginger, apple cider vinegar, sugar, cornstarch, and salt into the soy sauce until smooth. Pour the sauce over the vegetables in the skillet.
Step 10:

Toss the vegetables well in the sauce and simmer until done to your liking. Cook longer for tender vegetables, or keep it short for a crisp-tender, al dente bite. Serve hot right away, or let it cool and serve at room temperature. Enjoy!

Use whatever fresh vegetables are in season — cauliflower, broccoli, green beans, celery root, or Brussels sprouts all work well. Frozen vegetables, on their own or in a mix, are a great shortcut and cut the cooking time way down. For the vinegar, rice vinegar, plain white vinegar, or even lemon juice will stand in if you're out; apple cider vinegar is the most wholesome choice. You can swap the sugar for a little stevia. Some recipes call for honey, but heating destroys most of its benefits, so I'd skip it here. No fresh ginger? Ground dried ginger works. And in place of cornstarch, any flour — including gluten-free — will thicken the sauce nicely.
Note that you don't always need to salt-purge the eggplant — young eggplant and certain varieties aren't bitter to begin with.
Keep in mind that soy sauce is quite salty. Go easy on the added salt so the dish doesn't end up over-seasoned.