VEGETARIAN MA PO BEANCURD

When we come across the word 'Ma Po', automatically we relate it to Chinese cuisine.  Indeed it is and according to the Chef of this cookbook, there is a story behind the word.  Chef Yee Yo wrote that Ma Po, is the pockmarked Grandma who invented this dish in the 1860s.  She creatively transformed the bland bean curd into a powerfully spicy dish.  The family owns a food shop 'Chen's Ma Po Bean Curd Shop' in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province.  Apart from Ma Po Tofu, the shop serves many other bean curd and non bean curd dishes.  It manufactures fresh bean curd daily.  The ingredients in this recipe are essentially the same as those used by Ma Po more than a 100 years ago.

A tasty vegetarian Ma Po Tofu  dish which is not that spicy as you expect of a Sichuan dish.  It is quite mild in taste and not as oily like in most Sichuan cuisine. 

Recipe adapted from ‘You Can Cook Anything Chinese’ by Madame Yee Yo with modifications

Ingredients
[serves 3-4] 
2 pieces tofu [soft bean curd] - cubed
30 gm dried glutton pieces 
1 tbsp chopped ginger
1 heaped tbsp fermented black beans - rinsed and chopped
1 tbsp preserved soy bean paste - chopped *
1 tsp chilli boh* [replacing 1 tbsp of hot dao ban jiang]
2 tbsp oil
Seasoning Sauce
1/4 tsp each salt, pepper and msg
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp sesame seed oil
1 cup water
1 tbsp cornstarch + 2 tbsp water
Garnishing - chopped Chinese celery [kin chye] or coriander leaves

1. Heat oil in a non-stick wok, saute ginger until aromatic, add in black beans, soybean paster and chilli boh.
2. Stir to fry until fragrant, add  in the dried glutton.  Stir after addition.  Add in seasoning sauce and water.
3. Bring to boil, then add in the tofu cubes.  Simmer for 5-10 minutes until the flavours are well infused.
4. Thicken with cornstarch mix, bring to boil.
5. Dish up and garnish with Chinese celery or coriander leaves.  Serve hot.
   
   
   
   

I am sharing this post with Cookbook Countdown Event #22 hosted by Joyce and Emily of Kitchen Flavours and Emily's Cooking [Makan2] Foray respectively  

EIGHT JEWELLED VEGETABLES

The Chef of this dish advised that this is a vegetarian dish high in protein and hearty in taste that nobody would even miss the meat.  The dish looks and tastes so meaty and could be mistaken for a meat dish.

As the name implies, there are at least 8 main ingredients in this dish that can be served with rice or porridge or even eaten as a noodle dish.

You can try different combination of ingredients according to your preference but always cook the vegetables that the longest first before adding other vegetables like snow peas, dried glutton, Enoki mushrooms etc. and stirring after each addition.
This dish is very tasty with the some sugar add that brings out the overall flavour of the other ingredients.  Lovely dish.

Recipe adapted from ‘You Can Cook Anything Chinese’ by Madame Yee Yo with modifications

Ingredients

3 dried mushrooms – soaked, discard the stems and cut strips

¼ cup black fungus - break into small pieces
¼ cup dried lily buds – soaked, knotted and snip off the hard ends

50 gm red carrots – sliced

4 baby corns – cut 1 inch lengths

1/2 broccoli - cut small florets
1 piece sweet beancurd stick - cut 1 cm width pieces

2 tbsp oil

Seasoning

1 tbsp each of light soy sauce and mushroom flavor sauce

1 tsp each sugar, dark soy sauce and sesame seed oil

Dash of pepper and salt to taste

1 cup water

A bundle of  glass noodles – soak for 5-10 minutes, drained and cut 3 inch sections

1. Heat oil in a non-stick wok, pan fry beancurd stick until golden and crispy.  Dish up.
2. Using the same wok,  fry mushrooms, black fungus and lilybuds for ½ a minute.
3. Add the remaining ingredients according to the order listed and stir frying after each addition.
4. Pour in seasoning and bring liquid to a boil before adding the noodles.
5. Stir to mix well for 1-2 minutes until ingredients are cooked through.
6. Dish up to serve hot or cold.
   
   
   
   
   

I am sharing this post with Cookbook Countdown Event #22 hosted by Joyce and Emily of Kitchen Flavours and Emily's Cooking [Makan2] Foray respectively 

VEGETARIAN POTATO CURRY

This is a fragrant, tasty and non-soupy vegetable curry. It can be meal on itself spread over a plate of steaming hot rice. With this recipe, I realised that curries need not have to be prepared in big portions.

There is cauliflower and dried glutton pieces that resemble coarsely minced meat in the potato curry. You can add more curry powder if you like more spicy curry.

It taste sourish, savoury and not too spicy.  Appetisingly good that you will not miss meaty dishes.  

Recipe adapted from ‘You Can Cook Anything Chinese’ by Madame Yee Yo with modifications

Ingredients

[serves 3-4]

1 large potato – boiled till tender, peeled and cubed

50 gm dried glutton pieces

150 gm cauliflower – cut small pieces

A sprig curry flower

½ tbsp tamarind [assam jawa] mix with 1 cup water - strained

Curry Paste [mix]

1 tbsp each chilli boh, meat curry powder and blended lemongrass

¼ tsp each turmeric powder and vegetarian mushroom granules or belacan

Seasoning

½ tsp salt and sugar to taste

1 tsp cooking wine

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1. Heat 1-2 tbsp oil in non stick wok,  sauté curry paste and curry leaves until aromatic.
2. Add in the dried glutton pieces, stir to mix well, then add in the cauliflower and potato cubes.
3. Stir to mix well, pour in the tamarind juice, bring to boil.
4. Add in the seasoning to taste.  Add more water if necessary.  Simmer until cauliflower is tender and gravy reduced to thick.
5. Dish up to serve with rice.
   

  

I am sharing this post with Cookbook Countdown Event #22 hosted by Joyce and Emily of Kitchen Flavours and Emily's Cooking [Makan2] Foray respectively 

VEGETARIAN BEAN SPROUT ROLLS

According to the Chef, Chinese vegetarians like to make vegetable dishes taste like meat, fish, chicken etc.  Whether or not they taste so, this is certainly a delicious dish like other vegetarian dishes which I tried.  Moreover, this is a healthy dish.  The rolls can be prepared ahead and refrigerated .  It can be served hot or cold.

The garnishing sauce can be prepared ahead by boiling or just mix and pour over the fried rolls before serving.  It is very, very easy dish to prepare.

The fried rolls are fragrant and flavoured with the savoury, sourish sauce.  Awesome.

Recipe adapted from ‘You Can Cook Anything Chinese’ by Madame Yee Yo with modifications

Ingredients

[makes 8-10 rolls]

300 gm bean sprouts – tailed, rinsed and drained

50 gm red carrots – peeled and shredded

Some chopped Chinese celery [kin chye]

1 piece beancurd skin [foo peh]

Seasoning – ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper and 2 tbsp cornstarch

Garnishing Sauce [combined]

½ tsp sugar

2 tbsp light soy sauce

2 tbsp black vinegar

¼ tsp dark soy sauce

Dash of sesame seed oil

Some chopped coriander leaves and toasted sesame seeds

1. Blanch beansprouts in hot water, drained immediately.  Rinse in cold water and drained.
2. Mix in carrots, celery, salt, pepper and cornstarch.
3. Cut beancurd skin into 6”x 9” pieces.  Place beansprout mixture in the centre, roll tightly halfway, fold both ends toward the centre, dab some water along the edges.  Roll tightly the remaining half.
4. Heat  1-2 tbsp oil in non stick pan until hot.  Turn heat to low and place the rolls in pan with sides touching.  Fry until golden brown.  Take care not to burn then.  Turn and repeat.
5. When cool, cut into 2 inches sections and arrange on a platter.  Pour garnishing sauce over, garnish with chopped coriander and sesame seeds.  Serve.
   
   
   
   
   
   

I am sharing this post with Cookbook Countdown Event #22 hosted by Joyce and Emily of Kitchen Flavours and Emily's Cooking [Makan2] Foray respectively