April 19, 2007
Tofu And Fishballs In Black Bean Sauce
Silken tofu (bean curd) is such a delicate ingredient that sometimes I am afraid I will end up with mashed tofu instead of big pieces of tofu.
I am starting to grow to like tofu and will do my best to psycho my hubby to like it too (like maybe sneak some tofu under his favorite fried rice).
Tofu is a very good source of protein, specifically soy protein. Regular intake of soy protein is said to help lower total cholesterol levels by as much as 30%, lower LDL (the bad guys) levels by as much as 35-40%. And do you know that tofu also contains omega-3 fatty acids? In addition, tofu is a very good source of iron and copper, both minerals required to make red blood cells (hemoglobin).
Here’s an incomplete list of what a 4oz portion of tofu can give you as a percentage of the Daily Value requirements, based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Protein: 18.3%
Iron: 33.8%
Copper: 11%
Fats (in the form of beneficial Omega-3 fatty acids): 14.4%
I came across this Tofu And Fishballs In Black Bean Sauce Recipe from a recipe book called Hawkers’ Fare Simplified and adjusted the ingredient portion for 2 serving sizes. On the same day I made the Fried Chicken Wings, I decided that the oil did not look too overused, so I made use of the same oil (Oops, did I violate any cooking rules?) to deep fry the tofu and fishballs in this dish.
Note: Please don’t be too quick to judge and say that deep frying tofu cancels out all the benefits above. I use only oil with zero trans fats.
Ingredients (Serves 2):
- 8 fishballs (I used Dodo fishballs, thawed)
- 1 pc silken/soft tofu (cut into thick slices)
- oil for deep frying
- 1/2 tsp minced ginger
- 1/2 tsp minced garlic
- 1 tbsp salted (fermented) black bean (soaked and mashed)
- 1 red chilli (diced)
- 1 stalk spring onion (chopped)
Seasoning:
- 1 tsp oyster sauce
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 50ml water
- 1 tsp cornflour water for thickening
Cooking Method:
1. Heat up oil for deep frying. Using high heat, deep fry fishballs and tofu separately with high heat until golden brown. Dish and drain. Set aside.
2. Leaving 1 tbsp oil in wok, saute ginger, garlic, salted black beans and red chilli until fragrant.
3. Add in seasoning (except corn flour water), fishballs and stir well. Then thicken with corn flour water, stir well and pour over tofu.
4. Garnish with spring onions and serve. Best eaten with plan white rice.
Cook’s Tip:
The tofu was still silky soft and smooth after the deep frying. The tip is to use smoking hot oil so that the tofu will not absorb too much oil (resulting in soggy tofu).
Bite This!
More recipes:
Tofu - Who’s For Healthy Living?
Black Bean Peanut Pork Rib Soup
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April 20th, 2007 at 9:36 am
I’ve never tried to cook silken tofu before for fear turning them into mush in the end. Will definitely try this sometimes. by the way, where can you find the salted black beans you talk about? I mean, which section in the supermarkets? I’ve only seen the jar version.
April 20th, 2007 at 12:39 pm
Haha so you have the same fear as I :).
I got my packet of salted black beans from a small Asian Supermarket and it wasn’t placed in any specific “category” as it was like a “discount” item that day. Since it is dried, I guess you can try the dried goods section. The jar version should work fine too… it’s just that I had a Lee Kum Kee jar version sometime ago but I only used it once before the expiry date so I had to throw it out.
May the tofu force be with you…
April 21st, 2007 at 5:15 am
you know what, when you mention toufu, i suddenly think of tigerfish! haha..
Will we be seeing more deep fried dishes? This dish looks delicious!
April 21st, 2007 at 12:57 pm
T is for Tofu and Tigerfish!
No more deep fried dishes for me at the moment. I got a sore throat after eating too many piping hot fried chicken wings!
April 21st, 2007 at 11:26 pm
Round round, soft soft…:D
I don’t like to deep fry silken tofu. The only time I tried was to mix them with ground meat, then deep fry. But your deep-fry silken seem successful.
April 22nd, 2007 at 5:13 am
Tiga! LOL! … the tofu I used was the square type… I cut into rectangle blocks but one “broke” in the frying process so I “broke” all to make them smaller squares.
April 22nd, 2007 at 10:08 am
You really love your Dodo fish balls. I actually prefer their fish cakes better, so crunchy and not so busuk (stinky). But somehow the stores here stop carrying them, cry cry.
April 22nd, 2007 at 10:57 pm
I love tofu, done any style. But I’m not a fan of shrimp or fish balls. To me, they taste artificial.
I eat the Korean tofu stew about once a week mainly because I love tofu but also because I love Korean food.
April 23rd, 2007 at 8:16 am
RM:
Dunno lei… I tried R99 fishcake (when my friend made laksa) before, they tasted fake to me. Maybe they have different brands of fishcakes.
Ming:
I can imagine fishballs tasting artificial (depending on brand) but interesting that you say shrimp tastes artificial too! Overcooked shrimp taste rubbery… maybe that’s why?
Korean Tofu Stew sounds good :)
April 23rd, 2007 at 10:55 pm
*yummy* looks so tasty!