We went to Eindhoven to visit a friend on the 11th November, a public holiday in Belgium. I told hubby I wanted to drop by Amazing Oriental, a dutch chinese supermarket chain which has several outlets all over Nederland, one of which is in Eindhoven. So we went there and I bought several things which I couldn't get in the nearest chinese supermarket near my house, one of which was the "elusive" sng muay or sour plums. Among my other "prized purchases" were 1 kilo of purple sweet potatoes, a packet of chai sum, a packet of baby pak choy, tin of Crisco shortening (you have no idea how difficult it is to find Crisco in Belgium), a packet of mango gummy candies, a 9-inch kek lapis aluminium square baking tin and a pandan plant with roots which has since died despite my tender love and care.
I bought the sng muay or sour plums specially to make this crunchy pickled pumpkin (or butternut squash) appetizer. I have seen several bloggers blog about this appetizer and I decided that I have to give it a try no matter what. I am glad that I tried it, it was really very nice, very crunchy and refreshing, and very addictive. It was all finished within a day, so don't ask me how long it can keep. :)
Recipe adapted from Jozelyn Ng of Spice up My Kitchen
Ingredients
400g raw butternut squash (weight of 1 small butternut squash, after removing skin and seeds)
1 tsp sea salt
4 to 5 sour plums
juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp sugar
Method
1. Slice the butternut squash or pumpkin thinly. Sprinkle salt over it and let it sit in a bowl for 10 to 15 min. Then rinse it with water, drain completely and pat dry.
2. Remove the seeds from sour plum, and cut into small strips, and add to the butternut squash/pumpkin. Squeeze juice of 1 lemon and add 1/2 to 1 tbsp sugar. Mix evenly and chill it in fridge for few hours before serving.
Notes:
You can use mandarin peel or chen pi 陈皮 instead of sour plum or even the sng muay powder for guava. Just anything sour. You can also use green thai lime instead of lemon. Amount of salt and sugar and lemon juice are according to your taste, pls vary accordingly.
I am submitting this post to "My Treasured Recipes #3 - Taste of Autumn (Oct/Nov 2014)" hosted by myself, Miss B of Everybody Eats Well in Flanders and co-hosted by Charmaine of Mimi Bakery House