Dongbei · main
Di San Xian
地三鲜 · Dì Sān Xiān
A simple Dongbei stir-fry of aubergine, potato and green pepper — the vegetarian staple of northeastern China.
Di san xian (three fresh from the earth) is the most ordered vegetable dish across China's northeast and is one of the most recognised home-cooking staples nationwide. Three vegetables that ripen together in late summer — aubergine (eggplant), potato and green pepper — are cut into rough chunks, each deep-fried or pan-fried separately to develop a slightly crisp exterior, then combined in a wok with garlic, soy sauce, oyster sauce (or hoisin), a little sugar and starch-thickened broth. The aubergine absorbs oil and becomes silky; the potato provides starchy body; the green pepper adds freshness. The resulting dish is hearty, savoury and slightly sticky. It is eaten over plain steamed rice. Despite being vegetarian by ingredients, check that the restaurant does not add lard or oyster sauce if strict vegetarian or vegan dietary restrictions apply.
Where to try
Available at northeastern Chinese (dongbei cai) restaurants nationwide — it appears on virtually every menu. Harbin and Shenyang have the densest concentration of restaurants serving this as a daily staple.
Dietary notes
Aubergine, potato, green pepper, soy. May contain oyster sauce. Vegetarian if prepared without lard or oyster sauce.
Cities to try Di San Xian
Other northeast dishes
- Dongbei Braised Pork Stew东北乱炖
A robust northeastern 'everything pot' of pork ribs, aubergine, potato, beans and corn braised together in a clay pot.
- Guo Bao Rou锅包肉
Crispy battered pork slices in a sweet-and-sour vinegar sauce — a northeastern Chinese dish created in Harbin.
- Pickled Cabbage and Pork Stew酸菜炖猪肉
A long-simmered northeastern stew of fermented cabbage with fatty pork — warming, sour and deeply satisfying.