Veggie Dip {Easy Yummy Chinese Style}

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Veggie Dip Chinese Style featuring fermented soybean paste, a splash of sesame oil, Zhenjiang vinegar, and a pinch of sugar is so quick and easy to make, yet refreshing and delicious.

Veggie Dip Chinese Style Fun Facts

This Chinese-style vegetable dipping sauce, or “Zhan Jiang” {蘸酱} in Chinese, which literally translates as “Dipping Paste”, is a classic food in China’s northeastern region. The area is well-known for producing high-quality and bountiful soybeans, among many other things. People in this region have been making homemade fermented soybean paste since ancient times.

“Da Feng Shou Zhan Jiang Cai” {大丰收蘸酱菜} refers to a grand harvest of vegetables enjoyed with the dipping sauce. Long green peppers, cucumbers, radish, pressed tofu skin {Bai Ye 百叶} are among the most popular vegetables to go with this vegetable dipping sauce.

By the way, I learned later that Korean people also embrace a similar tradition. It is understandable considering the geographical adjacency.

Fermented soybean paste, the first essential ingredient of this veggie dip

Known as “Da Jiang” {大酱} in Chinese, the fermented soybean paste is the first ingredient of this delicious veggie dip. It is a traditional and ancient condiment in Northeastern China. Local people in this area have a tradition of making fermented soybean paste at home.

How to make fermented soybean paste at home?

In a nutshell, making fermented soybean paste is a 3-step process.

The first step is to boil/simmer soybeans.

Secondly, you drain and mash the cooked & softened soybeans. Then use the mashed soybeans to form & compact them into blocks and then let them dry under the sun.

For this step, some methods choose not to mash the soybeans. Instead, they leave the soybeans as a whole, but coat it with flour and let them dry and ferment under the sun.

The third step is the first stage fermentation. As these soybean blocks go through the drying process, the outside becomes hardened and will form a thick crust. Usually, the mold can be seen growing on the surface, which is part of the normal fermenting process.

Last but not least is the second stage fermentation. You combine previously boiled water and salt, usually 1 portion of salt, 5 portions of water, and add it to a tall clay or amber glass jar. Break down the soybeans blocks into small pieces, and add to the pot. Fold and blend the soybean pieces with the salty water in the clay pot until form a batter. Then seal the pot with a muslin cloths and let it ferment under the sun.

Most of the Chinese fermented soybean paste on the market has a deep dark color. Nevertheless, the homemade version looks more like traditional Korean-style fermented soybean paste, which has a reddish brown hue.

How to make Chinese Style Zhan Jiang {Veggie Dip}?

It is super easy and straightforward to make this iconic Northern Chinese Style veggie dip. Just blend fermented soybean paste with a splash of sesame oil, Zhenjiang vinegar and a pinch of sugar until smooth.

How to use the fermented bean paste based Veggie Dip?

First of all, the usual vegetables that are good for making salad is also excellent to go with this Chinese Style Veggie Dip. Long green pepper, cucumber, radish are among the most popular choices. Usually people like to cut and slice the veggies into long sticks.

The pressed tofu skin is a classic unqiue choice. Cut them into small squares, then blanch in boiling water until soft and then roll into a scroll and dip.

A word of caution – fermented soybean paste by nature is very salty. Therefore a tiny bit goes a long way.