Preserved radishes

A small, fast-growing root, crisp and peppery — eaten in France with butter and salt.

What to do with it

Classics built on it

TeochewTeochew porridgeRice cooked in plenty of water only until the grains are soft but whole, eaten with a spread of small salty dishes.No one here has made it yet TeochewFried carrot cakeSteamed white radish and rice-flour cake, cut into cubes and fried with egg, garlic and preserved radish — 'white', or 'black' with sweet soy.No one here has made it yet

Kinds

Round red: The everyday one.
French breakfast: Long, pink and white-tipped, milder.
Watermelon: Green outside, pink inside; a winter radish.

Knowing it

Where to buy: In bunches with fresh leaves — the leaves are good wilted into soup.

Kitchens that keep it in

Chaoshan, the far east of Guangdong, southern ChinaTeochewThe cooking of Chaozhou and Shantou on the coast of eastern Guangdong: seafood, clear broths and slow master-stock braises, each dish with its own little dip.7 classics