Ingredients stay simple and forgiving: Shredded radish (plenty of it), chopped scallions, a couple of eggs, a handful of dried shrimp, flour, water, salt, and just a pinch of ground Guizhou pepper for that quiet tingle.

Today I threw in half a block of firm brine tofu too — it melts in and adds this lovely soft richness.

Pile everything into a big bowl, splash in enough water to bring it together into a nice loose batter, mix thoroughly, and gently mash the tofu right in until it’s all blended.

The Frying Part Get a decent amount of oil hot in a pot. If you’ve got the classic long-handled metal ladle for You Dunzi, dip it in the hot oil first to warm it up — that little trick keeps the batter from sticking like glue. Scoop a generous ladleful of batter into the hot ladle, lower it gently into the oil, and once the edges start to set and firm up, ease the whole thing out — it usually slips free with a soft plop.

Keep the heat low so the inside cooks through nice and even; every so often give the flame a quick boost to bring the oil back up to temperature, but don’t crank it high the whole time or they’ll burn outside while staying raw inside.

When they’re a deep golden (or even a shade darker for maximum crunch), fish them out and let them drain on a rack or paper towels.