Some people don’t like tofu because it tastes kind of plain. The dish I’m introducing today is a Cantonese tofu dish, light but with rich flavor.

Stuffed Tofu

Ingredients:
700g Chinese tofu
150g -200g minced pork
1 dried mushroom soaked in water (optional)
10g ginger
2 spring onion
1 egg
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp cooking wine
1 tsp dark soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp ground Sichuan pepper (optional)
1/2 tsp five spice (optional)
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp cornflour
1/2 tsp salt
cooking oil

Method:

Preparation:

1. Finely chop the soaked mushroom, ginger and the spring onion, keep half of the ginger and 1/3 of the spring onion for later use. Place the rest in a bowl with the minced pork.
2. Add 1 tbsp of light soy sauce, 1 tbsp of cooking wine, 1 tsp of sesame oil, ground Sichuan pepper and five spice, mix well. Crack the egg in, add 1 tsp of cornflour and salt, mix in one direction until it become a paste.
3. Put the rest seasoning ingredients in a bowl to make a sauce, add 2/3 cup of cold water, mix well for later use.
4. Cut the tofu into cubes about 4cm on each side. Using a teaspoon to make a deep hole of each tofu cube. Make sure to not to cut through the base.
5. Fill each hole with the pork stuffing, fill in as much as you can.

Cooking:

1. Heat up a frying pan with 3 tbsp of cooking oil over strong heat. When the oil is hot, place the tofu cubes in the pan, stuffing side down. Turn to mid heat, cook for about 3 minutes, when the down side turns to gold brown in color, flip over to cook for another 3 minutes. Take out for later use.
2. Add 1 tbsp of cooking oil, turn to strong heat, add the remaining ginger and spring onion to stir-fry. When you get the aroma, give the prepared sauce a quick mix, then add to the pan and stir constantly.
3. When the sauce bubbles and starts to thicken, put the tofu cubes in one by one.  Turn to mid-low heat, cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 3-5 minutes, so the tofu cubes can absorb the flavor of the sauce. Take out and serve with steamed rice.

Tips:

1. For the left over tofu and stuffing, you can mix them together to make meat balls and fry together with the tofu cubes.
2. Or mix the tofu with finely diced spring onion, sesame oil and salt, then you get another light cold dish.