Fried Lotus Root is a very common dish in northern China. We call it Zha(2) Ou(3) He(2). The numbers in parentheses indicate the tone how you should pronounce it. (1->Flat tone; 2->Rising tone; 3->Falling rising tone; and 4->Falling tone). The following is a "recipe" from my family. We used to fry a lot of these before Spring Festival. And during Spring Festival, we were not supposed to cook any raw food, especially food you had to cut. (Don't ask me why.) So fried lotus root was one of the holiday dishes you could see on many families' dining tables. Zha(2) Ou(3) He(2) Prepare the lotus root: Fresh lotus root, wash clean. If the skin looks very clean, keep the skin; if not, peel the skin. Steam or boil the lotus root until it is cooked. Slice the lotus root like a clamshell with one end still attached. Prepare the fillings: Ingredients: Ground pork, chopped scallions, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt. Stir well. (I don’t have the exact measure. It does not matter you have put in too much ground pork or too many scallions. Just follow your experience or instinct, and do not put too much sesame oil or salt.) Prepare the flour mix: Several tablespoonful of flour. Add 1 egg, and some water. Stir well. When it is well mixed, it should look like pancake mix, but a lot thinner. Final step: Insert the fillings in between the double sliced lotus root. Dip the whole thing into the flour mix. Then deep-fry it until it turns brown.
