MAPO TOFU

I hardly posted any cooked dishes to my blog; but just the thought of writing out the recipe and taking photos during the late evening for my cooked dishes just doesn't get me out to do so sometimes.

I posted this Mapo Tofu picture in my facebook page and one member requested for the recipe..... well anyway, here goes my home cooked Mapo Tofu version.

MAPO TOFU 

Ingredients 

1 block soft tofu, cut into small cubes
100g mince meat
1 tbsp chopped shallot
1 tsp chopped garlic
2 tbsp Chilli Bean sauce (“Dou Ban Jiang”)
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tbsp light soy sauce
½ cup water  (adjust to your preference)
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 stalk spring onions, chopped small
(Some salt or soya sauce to your preference taste) 

Method 

Marinate the mince meat with 1 tbsp light soy sauce.  Set aside.

Heat up frying pan/wok with cooking oil.  Add in the chopped shallots and garlic, stir fry a minute till fragrant.  Add in the marinate mince meat and stir fry till the meat half done.

Then add in the chilli bean sauce and chilli powder and stir fry till aromatic.  Add in the tofu and water,  gently stir in the blend into the sauce.  Lower the heat and let simmer for 3-5 minutes till sauce slightly thickens.  Add in the chopped spring onions.

Dish up and serve hot.

Seriously with this dish alone can just have you go for another bowl of rice; and really you don't need to cook any other dishes anymore unless you have someone who is picky eater at home!!  LOL!!

Yam Abacus Beads 算盘子

I love to eat yam (another word for yam is taro).  What about you?  There are so many delicacies that can be made with yam such as bubur cha cha, woo kok, woo tao koh, orh nee,  stir fry with pork belly.......etc...etc....

Seriously I never heard of Yam Abacus Beads until I watched one cooking/travelling show on TV.  Aigh....eventhough I'm a Malaysian and yet was so ignorant of this delicious delicacies available here in the country.

I've never eaten this before and love to give this a try and see how it goes but I'm sure I would love this lots.

Yam Abacus Beads 算盘子 (Yam Gnocchi Fry in Dried Shrimps & Woods ear) 
Recipe sourced from Billy Law (A Table For Two) 

Abacus beads
500g taro, sliced into cubes
80g tapioca flour, plus extra for dusting
A pinch of salt
Few tablespoons of hot water
1 tablespoon vegetable oil 

For Stir Fry Abacus Beads 
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
A small knob (5 gram) ginger, peeled then julienned
120g water chestnuts, cut into cubes  (I forgot to add this)

30g dried shrimp, soaked in hot water

1 medium dried squid, soaked and thinly sliced
6 dried mushrooms, soaked in hot water for 1 hour, thinly sliced
15g wood ear, soaked in hot water for 1 hour, thinly sliced
2 block firm tofu, cut into small cubes (I didn’t add this)
2 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon white pepper powder
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoon Shaoxing Wine
2 sprig spring onion, thinly chopped

A bunch of coriander
2 tablespoon vegetable oil

Method
1. First, prepare the abacus beads a day ahead. Place taro in steamer and steam until the taro has soften, about 15-20 minutes. Transfer taro to a large mixing bowl, mash with a fork while taro still hot. Add tapioca flour a little bit at a time and mix it in until combined, repeat until all flour used and knead the dough until no lumps. Add salt and oil to the mixture and knead for another minute. In this stage, if the dough is dry, you may add tablespoon of hot water.  Wrap the bowl in cling film, set a side to rest for at least 10 minutes.

2. Roll the dough into a long long and cut into small chunks.  Take one one small chunk and roll into a ball size of a marble, poke into the center of the ball with index finger to make an indentation then place the taro bead on the tray. Repeat until all dough is used.

3. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil on high heat, and also prepare a large bowl of chilled water on the side. In batches, drop the abacus beads into the hot water, once the beads are cooked and float to the surface, scoop them out with a strainer and transfer them to the chilled water. Drain and transfer to a bowl, pour some oil into the bowl and keep it a mix so the beads won’t stick together. Transfer the abacus beads to refrigerator and let it cools down. 

Note: If you are don't intend to use it immediately, put into a zip lock bag and store in the freezer.

4. Add a dash of oil in a frying pan on medium-low heat, in batches, fry the abacus beads until golden brown on both sides. Place them slightly apart to prevent sticking together. Once all done, place them on a plate and set aside.

5. In a wok, heat 2 tablespoon of oil on medium-high heat, add garlic and ginger, stir-fry for a minute. Then add mushroom, wood ear, tofu and water chestnuts, stir-fry for few more minutes. Add abacus beads and spring onions, then season with soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, white pepper and sesame oil, now stir-fry gently for another minute and is ready.

 

The Chinese called this Yam Abacus Beads..... and the western or Italian can called this as"Yam Gnocchi"

 

 YUM !!

"Chai Choy" (Mixed Vegetables in fermented red beancurd)

Usually on the first day of Chinese New Year, we go for a day if not half a day for vegetarian food and dishes.  Cooking this "Chai Choy" is easy. 

This big pot of Chai Choy dish I have adapted from here and here with some slight adjustment myself.

500g Chinese cabbage
1 carrot, sliced thin
4 cubes fermented red beancurd (nam yu)
3-4 dried mushroom, soaked and sliced thin
10 florets cloud ear fungus
a handful of lily bulbs
small bundle of glass noodle (tung fun)
2 tbsp oil
2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce
1 tbsp soya sauce
3-5 cups water

1.  Fry the red beancurd in oil till fragrant.
2.  Add in the cabbage and carrot and stir fry till its soft.
3.  Add in the sliced mushroom, cloud ear fungus and fry for about 1 minute and add in the water (about 1/2
     inch above the vegetables).
4.  Add in the sugar, oyster and soya sauce and bring to a boil.  Turn down the heat and let is slow simmer
     for about half an hour or till cabbage is limp.