Everyone Makes Din Tai Fung's $9 Cucumber Salad Wrong

Download the FREE Upside App here https://yt.link/EsKRg6r and use code Farmer10 to get an extra $10 Bonus on your first purchase. Thank you Upside for sponsoring this video! Din Tai Fung's $9 cucumber salad has no soy sauce and no vinegar in it, even though almost every copycat recipe online adds both. Their own menu allergen guide proves the soy sauce is missing, and their employee training materials rule out the vinegar. What's actually on these cucumbers is a dry brine of salt, sugar, and mushroom bouillon, plus four oils, including the chili oil people online describe like a controlled substance. Din Tai Fung sells that chili oil in Taiwan, and I reverse engineered it straight off the retail ingredient label: soybean oil, two kinds of chili, and five aromatics with zero seasoning. You'll see the coarse chili powder that keeps the oil clear instead of cloudy, why the green Sichuan peppercorn husks go in after the pour, and how the 90-minute brine seasons the cucumbers from the inside. And if making chili oil sounds like a hassle, I'll show you two store-bought options that work, which turns this into a ten minute dish. Download the full recipe document here: https://jasonfarmer.com/din-tai-fung-... Free recipe pack, six takeout dishes that taste like the restaurant: https://jasonfarmer.com/free-recipes/ Wanna learn how to make Din Tai Fung's green beans? Watch this next:    • Din Tai Fung Green Beans with Only 6 Ingre...   Main ingredients for this cucumber salad (affiliate links): Kosher Salt: https://geni.us/PiO2h Granulated Sugar: https://geni.us/eoYr Totole Mushroom Bouillon: https://geni.us/gsU2 Toasted Sesame Oil: https://geni.us/Nxwh8Xa Vegetable Oil: https://geni.us/gUOEeub Canola Oil: https://geni.us/m2MXZn Olive Oil: https://geni.us/XsLmAOh Sichuan Chili Flakes / Sichuan Chili Powder: https://geni.us/vN3Z Dried Chili Peppers: https://geni.us/j17BEHD Green Sichuan Peppercorns: https://geni.us/nwL6dgs Star Anise: https://geni.us/Ulk01 Chili Oil: https://geni.us/X2HEXu S&B La-Yu Chili Oil: https://geni.us/nne8whz Kitchen equipment for this cucumber salad (affiliate links): Made-In Saucier (5 quart): https://madeincookware.pxf.io/jeM97Z Made-In Saucier (2 quart): https://madeincookware.pxf.io/c/56429... Butane Burner: https://geni.us/yXYxEf9 Butane Canisters: https://geni.us/g4u9oM Gray Kunz Chef's Spoon Large: https://geni.us/q7AC Gray Kunz Chef's Spoon Small: https://geni.us/Xm9qc Anchor Glass Ramekins: https://geni.us/Jplij Deep Fry / Candy Thermometer: https://geni.us/GDqv Kitchen Scissors / Kitchen Shears: https://geni.us/0u8tRB Glass Mixing Bowls: https://geni.us/elrv Fine Mesh Strainer: https://geni.us/HJ4hK Kitchen Scale: https://geni.us/vXnZsI Measuring Spoons: https://geni.us/Fe7U4M Measuring Cups: https://geni.us/sKcCUZM Cutting Board / Plastic Cutting Board: https://geni.us/zIWbTB Misono Chef's Knife: https://geni.us/0NB5 Deli Containers: https://geni.us/rJXoK Music by Epidemic Sound (free 30-day trial! Affiliate link): https://share.epidemicsound.com/v23gld Timestamps: 0:00 Din Tai Fung cucumber salad and the $9 question 0:38 The allergen guide: no soy sauce, no vinegar 2:00 Persian cucumbers 2:35 The canola and olive oil house blend 3:24 Upside (sponsor) 4:37 Din Tai Fung chili oil: reverse-engineering the retail label 6:35 Frying the aromatics 7:22 Chili and green Sichuan peppercorn prep 9:02 The 300 degree pour 9:34 Steep and store 10:07 The dry brine: salt, sugar, mushroom bouillon 12:07 House Blend Oil 12:28 Assembly and the 9-4-1 pyramid 13:36 Store-bought chili oil options 14:11 Din Tai Fung cucumber salad taste test Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, Jason Farmer may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from amazon.com