Mung bean sheets tossed with shredded chicken and cucumber
Slippery mung bean sheet noodles tossed with cucumber, shredded chicken and a garlicky vinegar dressing — cool, refreshing and appetising for Chushu's lingering heat.
- 50 min
- Serves 2
- Toss
- Easy
Why it suits you: Damp-heat types have oily skin and a bitter taste and are prone to spots, and Chushu's lingering muggy heat dulls their appetite further. Mung bean sheets clear summer heat, cucumber and bean sprouts clear heat and drain water, lean chicken nourishes without heaviness, and the garlic-vinegar dressing wakes up the palate. Nothing is fried, so it stays light.
Method
Prep 35 min · Cook 15 min- 1Soak the mung bean sheets in warm water for 30 minutes until soft, boil for 1 minute until translucent, rinse under cold water, cut into wide strips and drain.
- 2Put the chicken and ginger into a pan of boiling water, turn off the heat immediately, cover and leave for 15 minutes until cooked through. Cool, then shred by hand.
- 3Cut the cucumber and carrot into matchsticks. Trim the bean sprouts, blanch for 30 seconds and rinse in cold water. Mix the garlic, soy sauce, vinegar and sesame oil.
- 4Spread the noodles on a plate, top with the vegetables and chicken, pour over the dressing, scatter with coriander and sesame and toss before eating.
Cautions
- Mung bean sheets and cucumber are cooling, so don't overdo them if your digestion is weak or you get loose stools — toss in the chicken and sprouts while still warm; make sure the chicken is cooked right through.
Chef's tips
- Letting the chicken cook in the residual heat keeps it tender rather than tough; a cold rinse after boiling stops the noodle sheets sticking together.
The TCM view
Mung beans are sweet and cold, clearing summer heat, draining water and detoxifying, and their sheet noodles keep this cooling nature. Cucumber is sweet and cool, clearing heat and quenching thirst; bean sprouts clear heat and drain damp; chicken is sweet and warm, boosting qi so the dish cools without depleting; garlic and vinegar whet the appetite and temper the coolness.
