'Vegetarian Chinese Soul Food'
Award-winning food journalist and cooking instructor Hsiao-Ching Chou joins us to discuss her new cookbook Vegetarian Chinese Soul Food, a vegetarian follow-up to her Chinese Soul Food cookbook that includes 75 plant-based comfort food recipes.
Recipe: Seared Tofu with Baby Bok Choy
We used to have a dish on the menu at my family’s restaurant that included paired triangles of flash-fried tofu with vegetables and slices of barbecued pork. For this interpretation, I didn’t want to fry the tofu, but I still wanted to give it another layer of flavor. The tofu is marinated, coated with a dusting of starch, and then seared. While I use baby bok choy in this recipe, you can opt for your choice of greens, such as gai lan, yu choy, spinach, or Chinese cabbage.
MAKES 4 SERVINGS
About 7 ounces medium or firm tofu (half a standard block), cut into ½-inch-thick slices, then each square cut in half diagonally to create triangles
2 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
⅓ cup cornstarch, for dredging
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
3 cups sliced baby bok choy, about ½ inch thick
½ cup brown beech mushrooms or enoki mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ cup water
¼ teaspoon sesame oil
Place the tofu in a shallow dish and drizzle 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce over the pieces. Carefully turn the tofu a few times to coat with the soy sauce. Put the cornstarch in another shallow dish or plate. Dredge the tofu with the cornstarch, making sure the tofu pieces are evenly coated. In a medium skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil over medium-low heat for about 1 minute. Place the tofu in the skillet, placing as many as will fit in the pan without overcrowding. Sear 1 to 2 minutes on each side, or until richly browned. Place the tofu on a clean plate. Repeat with any remaining tofu. Set aside.
Preheat a wok over high heat until wisps of smoke rise from the surface. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and heat until it starts to shimmer. Add the bok choy and stir for 30 seconds. Add the mushrooms and garlic. Stir for a few seconds to combine. Add the water and stir to combine. Add the tofu and the remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce, stirring carefully to combine. Reduce the heat to medium low and let simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the sauce is slightly thickened. Finish with sesame oil.
©2021 by Hsiao-Ching Chou. Excerpted from Vegetarian Chinese Soul Food by permission of Sasquatch Books.