Choose a large and thick radish and pickle it in soy sauce for a day or two before serving. They have a lovely sweet and crisp texture. Some experienced nuns know how to make them into items similar to dried-salted fish, cutting them to form a long chain of butterflies around one zhang1 in length, connected and fluttering without any breaks.2 It is a wondrous sight to behold. Cheng’en Temple has radishes for sale that have been pickled in vinegar, with the aged specimens tasting the best.
蘿蔔
蘿蔔取肥大者，醬一二日即喫，甜脆可愛。有侯尼能製為鯗，剪片如蝴蝶，長至丈許，連翩不斷，亦一奇也。承恩寺有賣者，用醋為之，以陳為妙。
Notes:
1Around a meter.
2Although the Chinese statements are somewhat disjointed, the use of the word jian 剪 (to cut with a pair of scissors) instead of the word qie 切 (to cut with a knife) evokes the image of a long chain of butterflies cut from paper, except that in this case radishes are used.
Sean J.S. Chen 