The Chinese Vegan Kitchen (32 page)

Quick Tofu and Mixed Vegetables in a White Sauce

Frozen stir-fry vegetables make quick work of this delicious dish, which can be stretched further if served over rice.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

1 pound firm or extra-firm tofu, drained

1 tablespoon peanut oil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger

2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped

¹
⁄
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teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste (optional)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

12 ounces frozen stir-fry vegetables, slightly undercooked according to package directions, drained well

Basic Chinese White Sauce, below

Place the tofu on a deep-sided plate or shallow bowl. Top with a second plate and weight with a heavy can. Let stand for a minimum of 15 minutes (preferably 1 hour). Drain excess water. Cut into 1-inch cubes.

In a wok or large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the tofu and cook, stirring often, until just beginning to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the ginger, garlic, red pepper flakes (if using), salt, and pepper; cook, stirring constantly, until tofu is lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the vegetables and toss well to combine. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the white sauce; cook, stirring, until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve at once.

{PER SERVING} Calories 215 • Protein 15g • Total Fat 9g • Sat Fat 1g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 20g • Dietary Fiber 4g • Sodium 296mg

BASIC CHINESE WHITE SAUCE

Use this basic, or master, white sauce to dress up countless vegetable and tofu dishes. Seasonings such as ground ginger, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper can be added according to the other ingredients in the recipe. For best results, use shortly after preparing.

MAKES ABOUT 1 CUP

³
⁄
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cup low-sodium vegetable broth

2
¹
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tablespoons Shaoxing rice wine, dry sherry, sake, or dry white wine

1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 4 teaspoons water

In a small saucepan, bring the broth, wine, soy sauce, and sugar to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the cornstarch mixture and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Use as directed in recipe.

{PER SERVING} (about
¹
⁄
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cup, or
¹
⁄
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of recipe) Calories 41 • Protein 2g • Total Fat 0g • Sat Fat 0g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 6g • Dietary Fiber 1g • Sodium 247mg

Beijing Mock Duck

Mock duck, with its distinctive flavor and artificial plucked duck texture, is actually a type of wheat gluten, or seitan. It is available in Asian markets and some well-stocked supermarkets in canned or frozen form. Ready in minutes, this tasty dish will soon be filed under your easy dinner party recipes.

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

¹
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cup duck sauce (plum sauce)

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tablespoon toasted (dark) sesame oil

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teaspoon five-spice powder

1 tablespoon peanut oil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger

3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 (10-ounce) cans vegetarian mock duck, rinsed, drained, patted dry with paper towels, cut into thin slices

About 24 (7-inch) prepared fresh or thawed frozen Chinese pancakes, or 2 recipes Classic Chinese Pancakes (
page 15
), warmed

Prepared hoisin sauce or Hoisin Sauce (
page 116
), to serve

4 scallions, thinly sliced, to serve

1 large cucumber (about 12 ounces), unpeeled, sliced into thin sticks, to serve

In a small bowl, combine the duck sauce, sesame oil, and five-spice powder; set aside.

In a wok or large nonstick skillet, heat the peanut oil over medium-high heat. Add the ginger and garlic and cook, stirring constantly, 30 seconds. Add the mock duck and cook, stirring constantly, 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and add the duck sauce mixture; cook, stirring, until hot and bubbly, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a serving bowl.

To serve, spread a warm pancake thinly with hoisin sauce; add scallions, cucumber, and mock duck mixture. Roll up and serve at once.

{PER SERVING} Calories 356 • Protein 22g • Total Fat 11g • Sat Fat 2g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 45g • Dietary Fiber 1g • Sodium 281mg

Crispy Seitan with Peanuts and Scallions

Seitan is processed wheat gluten that is higher in protein and has a chewier, meatier texture than tofu. This dish is delicious served with steamed broccoli and brown rice.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

¹
⁄
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cup Shaoxing rice wine, dry sherry, sake, or dry white wine

¹
⁄
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cup water

1 tablespoon hoisin sauce

1 tablespoon light brown sugar

1 tablespoon plain rice vinegar

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tablespoon toasted (dark) sesame oil

1 teaspoon cornstarch

¹
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teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon peanut oil

1 pound seitan, drained, patted dry with paper towels, cut into bite-size pieces

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cup chopped unsalted peanuts

1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger

4 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced

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cup chopped fresh cilantro

In a small bowl, whisk together the wine, water, hoisin, sugar, vinegar, sesame oil, cornstarch, salt, and pepper until blended; set aside.

In a wok or large nonstick skillet, heat the peanut oil over medium-high heat. Add seitan and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the peanuts and ginger and cook, stirring constantly, until nuts are lightly browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and add the hoisin sauce mixture and scallions; cook, stirring, until the sauce is thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the cilantro and serve warm.

{PER SERVING} Calories 376 • Protein 24g • Total Fat 19g • Sat Fat 3g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 30g • Dietary Fiber 1g • Sodium 211mg

Seitan and Vegetable Lettuce Wraps

These flavorful lettuce wraps also make a great appetizer or snack. Extra-firm tofu can replace the seitan, if desired.

MAKES 4 MAIN DISH OR 8 APPETIZER SERVINGS

4 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine, dry sherry, sake, or dry white wine

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon cornstarch

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to 1 teaspoon Chinese chili paste, or to taste

¹
⁄
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teaspoon salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon toasted (dark) sesame oil

¹
⁄
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tablespoon peanut oil

³
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pound seitan, drained, patted dry with paper towels, cut into
¹
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-inch cubes

1 medium red bell pepper (about 6 ounces), chopped

3 scallions, white and green parts separated, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger

1 (8-ounce) can water chestnuts, rinsed, drained, and chopped

1 head iceberg lettuce or romaine lettuce leaves, washed, dried, leaves separated, large outer leaves cut lengthwise in half

Prepared hoisin sauce, Hoisin Sauce (page 116), or Quick Spicy Hoisin Sauce (
page 140
), to serve

In a small bowl, mix together the soy sauce, water, wine, sugar, cornstarch, chili paste, salt, and black pepper until well blended; set aside.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat
¹
⁄
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tablespoon sesame oil and the peanut oil over medium-high heat. Add the seitan, bell pepper, white parts of the scallions, and celery; cook, stirring, 3 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring constantly, 2 minutes. Add the water chestnuts and green parts of the scallions and cook, stirring constantly, 30 seconds. Reduce the heat to medium and add the reserved soy sauce mixture. Cook, stirring, until heated through and thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining
¹
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tablespoon sesame oil; let cool a few minutes.

To serve, place 1 to 2 heaping teaspoons of the seitan and vegetable mixture into the middle of a lettuce leaf. Top with hoisin sauce. Fold into a packet or roll up. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

{PER SERVING} (without sauce) Calories 285 • Protein 19g • Total Fat 12g • Sat Fat 2g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 30g • Dietary Fiber 2g • Sodium 757mg

Sichuan-Style Mapo Seitan

This spicy seitan variation of Sichuan’s famous mapo doufu is a favorite of mine—serve over hot cooked rice for a hearty and homey meal. Feel free to tone down the heat by using a smaller amount of crushed red pepper flakes and omitting the Chinese hot oil altogether. Try to use soft silken tofu instead of the regular soft variety, as the former holds its shape better in this dish. Hot bean sauce, also known as hot bean paste or chili bean
sauce/paste, is a fermented paste that combines hot chilies with broad beans and/or soybeans and other seasonings; if you can’t locate it, black bean sauce can be substituted for a less spicy alternative. Moreover, if fermented black beans are unavailable, replace with black bean sauce.

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

¹
⁄
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to 1 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns

6 ounces seitan, drained, patted dry with paper towels, cut into
¹
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-inch cubes

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch

¹
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cup water

3 tablespoons peanut oil

3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger

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cup chopped scallion greens, plus additional, for garnish

3 tablespoons hot bean sauce or paste

1 tablespoon salted (fermented) black beans, rinsed and chopped

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teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste

1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth

1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine, dry sherry, sake, or dry white wine

2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

2 teaspoons sugar

1 teaspoon toasted (dark) sesame oil

1 teaspoon Chinese hot oil, or to taste (optional)

16 ounces soft tofu, drained, cut into
¹
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-inch cubes

In a small heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-low heat, cook the Sichuan peppercorns, stirring and shaking the pan occasionally, until fragrant and toasted, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a mortar and pestle; lightly crush and set aside.

In a small mixing bowl, toss the seitan with 2 teaspoons of the cornstarch until evenly coated; set aside. In another small bowl, mix the remaining 1 tablespoon cornstarch with the water until blended; set aside.

In a wok or large nonstick skillet, heat the peanut oil over medium-high heat. Add the seitan and cook, stirring and turning often, until lightly browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer seitan to a holding plate. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the scallion greens and hot bean sauce; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add black beans and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, 15 seconds. Add a pinch of the crushed Sichuan peppercorns and stir quickly to combine. Add broth, wine, soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, and hot oil (if using); bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the tofu, and cook, stirring gently so that the tofu holds together, 3 minutes. Return seitan to skillet and stir gently to combine. Add cornstarch mixture and cook, stirring gently, until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve at once, sprinkled evenly with remaining crushed peppercorns and garnished with scallion greens.

{PER SERVING} Calories 240 • Protein 15g • Total Fat 14g • Sat Fat 2g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 16g • Dietary Fiber 2g • Sodium 171mg