One bite of this spicy celtuce chicken and your rice is doomed—savory, spicy, melt-tender!

In the winter garden, the vegetable we grow most is celtuce. Crisp, tender, and slightly sweet, it looks as green as jade once peeled. Today I pulled a few—some shredded into thin strips for a classic local cold salad, and some cut into chunks to stir-fry with chicken. The celtuce shreds are tossed with garlic, bird’s eye chilies, cilantro, chili oil, and roasted pork—refreshingly crunchy and appetizing. In the stir-fried chicken dish, the chicken is first seared until fragrant, then cooked with celtuce chunks and chili-infused oil. The spicy aroma slowly seeps in, the celtuce absorbs the meat’s richness, and it’s so good with rice you just can’t stop eating.