The Chinese fermented vegetable dish often made with cabbage is suan cai. The name literally means “sour vegetable,” and the food is traditionally made by salting and fermenting Chinese cabbage or Chinese mustard.
In northern China, napa cabbage is the usual choice, producing a preparation somewhat comparable to European sauerkraut. In southern and western regions, thicker-stemmed Chinese mustard varieties are also common. The vegetables are packed into jars or crocks, compressed under weight, and left to ferment, often for about a month at room temperature.
Suan cai has a long history in China. Descriptions of pickled vegetables appear in the Book of Odes, associated with the 11th–7th centuries BCE, while a Northern Wei agricultural text describes 18 types of suan cai. It is especially associated with northeastern Chinese cooking, where it appears in pork stews, dumplings, hot pot, and noodle soups.
Suan cai is sometimes confused with kimchi or zha cai. Kimchi is Korean and often includes chili and garlic, while zha cai is specifically made from a swollen mustard stem. Suan cai itself may be served as a condiment or cooked with meat to cut through rich, fatty flavors.