Thursday, January 9, 2014

Home Style Tofu (Jia Chang Dou Fu)

Home Style Tofu is basically a homey Chinese concoction that comes in many iterations, depending on who the home cook is. The traditional Szechuanese version is spicy due to the addition of hot bean paste. My mom's Taiwanese version (with julienned pork, soy sauce, a pinch of sugar, sesame oil, and Chinese chives) is not. Anyhoo, I like to straddle the line between savory & spicy, so this is my take on the dish. 



Ingredients:
1 lb. pork loin, cut into thin strips/julienned
1 tbsp. cornstarch
2 tbsp. soy sauce

5 cloves garlic, minced
1 red or green jalapeno (or Fresno) pepper, seeded and sliced
5 scallions, sliced into 1" strips along the bias
4 oz. fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and cut into thin strips (optional)

1 tbsp. chili black bean sauce (I like "Lao Gan Ma" brand)

2 14-oz pkgs. of extra firm tofu, cut into 1/2" slices, 2" x 2" square

SAUCE:
2 cups chicken stock (2 cups water + 1 tbsp. Totole chicken powder)
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. pepper

1 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tbsp. water

1. Marinate julienned pork in 1 tbsp. cornstarch and 2 tbsp. soy sauce for 30 minutes up to overnight. Set aside. 

2. Slice the tofu and blot dry with paper towels. Set aside.

3. Place a large cast iron skillet over high heat; add 1/2 cup of oil heat until almost smoking. In the meantime, blot the tofu slices again with paper towels to remove as much moisture/water as possible. Fry the tofu slices in two batches in the hot oil (add more as needed) about 5 minutes per side until lightly browned. Remove the fried tofu to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. 

4.  In a large wok or saute pan, heat 1-2 tbsp. vegetable oil over high heat; stir in marinated pork and toss occasionally with spatula until the meat starts to brown. Stir in the garlic, red chili, scallions, and fresh shiitakes; stir briefly for 30 seconds or until the mushrooms are just cooked through. 

5. Add the reserved tofu and toss gently to combine; pour in the sauce and bring to a boil.

6. Combine 1 tbsp. of cornstarch and 1 tbsp. of water to make a cornstarch slurry and add to the sauce mixture in the pan. Cook around 30 seconds or until the sauce has thickened. 

7. Pour onto a serving platter or into a clay pot and serve with steamed white rice.







"La Gan Ma" Black Bean Chili Oil is my fav brand.

You can also sub with Lee Kum Kee's Black Bean Garlic Sauce.


Pat the tofu slices dry with paper towels before frying.

You can deep fry the tofu.

Or pan fry in less oil in a cast iron pan.








No comments:

Post a Comment