A rare occurrence happening so quickly in succession!  More Chinese cooking by V this weekend after the excellent Broccoli Tofu Stir Fry he made couple of weeks back.  And this time I made sure I set up my camera tripod properly and took my time to get properly focused photos.  It helped that the winds were not as bad this time.   Judge for yourselves, here you go:

 

 

The pictures turned out well, but the dish turned out even better!   V just nails Chinese cooking, and as I have mentioned before it is because he does not overcook the vegetables.   Also our wok makes Chinese cooking a breeze (you cannot not use a wok with acidic ingredients like vinegar and tomatoes, though)!

However, our favorite Chinese food is something that we don’t have to slave over.  Veggie Garden in the South Bay is our go-to Chinese Vegetarian place from where we regularly do takeaway.  V always gets the Kung Pao Tofu and I always get the broccoli in garlic sauce, with some brown rice on the side.  The owner knows our order so well now, that she always throws in the extra peanuts for V, even before he asks for it.  She knows that V likes it extra spicy and that I like it very basic. And of course we share with each other.  If that isn’t comfort food, what is?  Everyone needs a go-to takeaway place!

 

 

V says the trifecta of Chinese cooking is the three Gs – green onions, garlic, and ginger.  I do not fully agree with that, because sometimes you just need one of these 3 ingredients to shine. But when he used the trifecta in today’s dish, it certainly was delectable.

Recipe for Mushroom Tofu Stir Fry

Inspired by a recipe in Bon Appetit

Serves 4 as a main dish with rice

[Printable Recipe]

Ingredients:

• 1 tub (~14 oz) extra firm organic tofu
• About 1 lb mushrooms (button, shiitake, woodear, oyster), washed and chopped in to bite sized pieces
• 6 stalks of green onions (scallions), washed, root trimmed and discarded, then white and green parts separately cut in to 1 inch pieces
• 1 inch piece ginger, peeled and grated
• 6 cloves ginger, peeled and minced
• Vegetable oil for pan frying
• 4 Tbsp corn starch
• For the sauce:
  • 1 Tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
  • 3 Tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
  • 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• Salt and crushed black pepper to taste

Method:

• Squeeze extra water out of the tofu:  Place the tofu on a plate.  Place another plate on top and weigh it down with something heavy for 30 mins to an hour until the water is squeezed out.
• While the tofu is being pressed, make the sauce: Whisk together all the ingredients for the sauce and keep aside
• Remove the tofu that has been squeezed of water and cut it in to bite-sized cubes.  Dredge the cubed tofu in about 4 Tbsp of corn starch and a pinch of salt.
• Heat a pan and add some vegetable oil.   Pan fry the tofu until browned on all sides.  Remove and set aside on a plate
• Heat some more oil in the pan and add the white part of the green onions (scallions) and garlic and stir until fragrant on medium heat
• Add the chopped mushrooms and ginger and stir until the mushrooms are cooked, about 10-15 mins on medium heat
• Add the sauce, stir and then add green part of the green onions and switch off the heat
• Remove in to a serving platter and serve with white rice

With the chewy mushrooms and crispy tofu and the freshness of the green onions, this dish was certainly a hit!