In my ongoing search for vegetarian dishes, I cooked this from Fuchsia Dunlop's brilliant book, Every Grain of Rice. Tofu itself is quite bland, so enjoying it is all about using it is a vehicle for other flavours, and appreciating the texture of the tofu itself.
Ingredients
500g plain tofu
4 tbsps of cooking oil
2 tbsps of chilli bean paste
1 tbsp of fermented black beans, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp of minced ginger
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
100 ml of vegetable stock
black pepper
2 tsps of potato flour, mixed with 2 tbsps of cold water
1/2 tsp of ground roasted Sichuan pepper
the green parts of 4 spring onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
Method
- Cut the tofu into 2 cm cubes, cover in very hot, slightly salted water, and leave to steep. Prepare the other ingredients. (When I'm cooking Chinese food, I tend to arrange all my dry ingredients on a plate, in their order of use.) Remove the tofu from the water with a slotted spoon, and put it on a plate.
- Heat your wok until it is nice and hot, add the oil, reduce heat to minimum, and add the chilli bean paste. Stir fry for about 30 seconds, add the black beans, and stir fry for a few seconds more. Add the ginger and garlic, stir for a few seconds more.
- Add the tofu, stir gently to coat with the sauce, and add the stock and a few grinds of black pepper.
- Bring to a boil, simmer for a few minutes, then add the flour and water mixture, and continue to simmer until the sauce thickens.
- Transfer the tofu and sauce to a serving bowl, sprinkle the Sichuan pepper and spring onion greens over it, and serve.
Pock-marked old woman's tofu
Apparently this is what the Chinese name of this dish means. One can only admire the honesty - it makes a refreshing change from all the adjective-laden titles of restaurant dishes in the UK.
