The Chinese Vegan Kitchen (41 page)

In a wok or large nonstick skillet with a lid, heat peanut oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring constantly, 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add mushrooms and onion and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add zucchini and tomato and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add broth mixture and bring to a brisk simmer, stirring; reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until zucchini is tender and liquid is thickened and reduced, about 10 minutes. Add the scallions, sesame oil, and pepper; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Season with additional salt and pepper, as needed. Serve at once.

{PER SERVING} Calories 119 • Protein 5g • Total Fat 6g • Sat Fat 1g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 15g • Dietary Fiber 4g • Sodium 377mg

Desserts and Other Sweets

In the Western world, desserts tend to carry a ton of weight, either as decadent concoctions representing the chef’s grand finale or sweet rewards for cleaning the dinner plate. Not so in China. Rather than indulging in a fancy dessert after the evening meal, the Chinese prefer to eat fruit, usually in its fresh and natural state. It’s not that the Chinese don’t have a sweet tooth—far from it. In fact, to many Western palates, some of the traditional Chinese desserts that do exist are overly sweet. However, the Chinese normally prefer to indulge their cravings for sweets between meals, especially when entertaining company or celebrating special occasions and festivals. That desserts don’t figure more prominently in Chinese cuisine is largely a practical matter, as well. For one, most households lack ovens and, until recently, even refrigerators. For another, the quick turnover in most Chinese restaurants is largely dependent upon a repertoire of quick-cooking, stir-fried dishes—the lengthy preparation of complicated desserts would
invariably tie up the kitchen. Instead, households and restaurants alike prefer to leave the job of elaborate desserts and pastries to bakeries, of which there are many. Of course, you can always follow Chinese tradition and conclude your evening meal with a piece of fruit. Or, you can occasionally break with tradition and indulge in the following delicious desserts with no regrets—it’s all good!

Sweet Rice Sesame-Peanut Dumplings with Coconut

Soft and chewy on the outside, sweet and crunchy on the inside, these delightful dumplings are best served shortly after steaming. For easy entertaining, the raw dumplings can be refrigerated up to 24 hours before steaming and rolling in the coconut. Make sure you purchase glutinous rice flour, also known as sweet rice flour, and not regular rice flour; the former is made from short-grain sticky rice, which creates the essential chewiness of the dumplings.

MAKES 12 DUMPLINGS

¹
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cup chopped unsalted roasted peanuts

3 tablespoons dark brown sugar

2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

3 cups glutinous rice flour

²
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cup boiling water

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cup plus 2 tablespoons cold water (10 tablespoons)

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cup shredded sweetened coconut, or more, as needed

6 candied cherries or citron, halved (optional)

In a small bowl, combine the peanuts, sugar, and sesame seeds; set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the rice flour and boiling water, mixing until thoroughly combined. Add the cold water and mix until the dough forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. Cover with a damp towel and let rest 10 minutes.

Shape the dough into a long cylinder and cut into 12 equal pieces. Cover with the damp towel. Roll each piece of dough into a 3
¹
⁄
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-inch circle, re-covering as you finish to prevent from drying out. Place 2 teaspoons of the peanut-sesame mixture in the center of each circle; wrap up to form a smooth ball, pinching the edges of the dough together to seal. Re-cover with the damp towel. (At this point, the prepared dumplings can be covered in plastic wrap and refrigerated up to 24 hours before continuing with the recipe. For best results, store seam sides up, to prevent leakage of filling.)

Place a steaming basket in a medium stockpot set over about 1
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⁄
₂
inches of water. Line the basket with aluminum foil and spray lightly with cooking oil. Working in batches, if necessary, place the dumplings in a single layer in the steaming basket, away from the edge, leaving about
¹
⁄
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-inch space between each dumpling. Bring to boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium, cover tightly, and steam 10 minutes (add a few extra minutes if refrigerated). Remove pot from the heat and leave partially covered for 5 minutes.

Place the coconut in a small bowl. Working with one at time, using oiled tongs (dumplings will be sticky), remove a dumpling from the steaming basket and immediately roll in the coconut. Garnish each with half a candied cherry, if using. Serve at once, or return to the steamer basket (off the heat), cover, and hold up to 1 hour.

{PER SERVING} (per dumpling, or
¹
⁄
₁₂
of recipe) Calories 181 • Protein 3g • Total Fat 3g • Sat Fat 1g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 35g • Dietary Fiber 1g • Sodium 8mg

Stuffed Apples with Sticky Rice and Dried Fruits

Without the sauce, this wholesome and delicious dessert can also double as breakfast—yum!

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

About
¹
⁄
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cup glutinous (sticky) rice

4 medium apples, preferably Fuji or other sweet, crisp variety (about 6 ounces each)

6 tablespoons dark brown sugar

4 pitted dried red dates (jujubes), chopped

4 walnuts, chopped

2 tablespoons raisins

¹
⁄
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teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup apple juice

2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water

Chopped crystallized ginger (optional)

Bring a large saucepan filled halfway with water to a boil over high heat. Add the rice, reduce the heat slightly, and boil about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until rice is tender but still chewy. Drain in a colander and let cool to room temperature (you will need
¹
⁄
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cup).

Meanwhile, slice off the tops of the apples about a quarter of the way from the top; reserve the tops. Using a melon baller, scoop out the core of each apple to remove all of the seeds. Scoop out about half of the remaining flesh and reserve. Finely chop the reserved flesh and transfer to a medium bowl; add
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cup rice (reserve any extra for another use), 4 tablespoons sugar, dates, walnuts, raisins, and cinnamon, mixing to thoroughly combine. Fill the apples with equal amounts of the rice mixture. Replace the tops and fasten with toothpicks.

Place the apples in a steaming basket set over about 2 inches of water; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and steam about 15 minutes, or until apples are fork-tender but not mushy. Carefully remove apples from steaming basket and transfer to individual serving bowls or deep-welled plates. (At this point, apples can be served warm or at room temperature, without the sauce, if desired. Alternatively, completely cooled apples can be covered and refrigerated up to 2 days before serving chilled or returning to room temperature, without sauce. If serving with sauce, proceed with recipe while apples are still warm.)

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, bring apple juice and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and add the cornstarch mixture; cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 3 minutes. To serve, remove toothpick and pour equal amounts of the sauce over the apples and sprinkle with the crystallized ginger, if using. Serve at once.

{PER SERVING} Calories 248 • Protein 2g • Total Fat 3g • Sat Fat 0g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 56g • Dietary Fiber 5g • Sodium 4mg

Green Apples Steamed with Sweet Red Bean Paste

The Chinese have instinctively always known what recent studies have confirmed—an apple a day really does keep the doctor away, sustaining and protecting the body from head to toe, inside and out. China produces approximately one-third of all the apples on the planet—typically eaten out
of hand as snacks, on special occasions they are plated and dressed up as desserts. Feel free to experiment with your favorite fillings.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

6 tablespoons prepared sweet red bean (adzuki) paste or Sweet Red Bean Paste (
page 182
)

2 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger

4 large Granny Smith apples (7 to 8 ounces each), unpeeled

In a small bowl, combine the red bean paste and ginger; set aside.

Slice off the tops of the apples about a quarter of the way from the top. Using a melon baller, scoop out the core of the apple to remove all of the seeds and create a cavity for the bean paste mixture. Fill the cored apples with equal amounts (about 2
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tablespoons) of the bean paste mixture. Replace the apple tops to cover; secure each with a toothpick.

Place the apples in a steaming basket set over about 2 inches of water; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and steam about 15 minutes, or until fork-tender but not mushy. Carefully remove from steaming basket and transfer to individual serving plates or bowls. Remove toothpicks and serve warm or at room temperature. Alternatively, refrigerate completely cooled apples up to 2 days and serve chilled, or return to room temperature.

{PER SERVING} Calories 168 • Protein 3g • Total Fat 0g • Sat Fat 0g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 36g • Dietary Fiber 4g • Sodium 9mg

Coconut Jam

Kaya is a coconut jam highly popular in Singapore, Malaysia, and the tropical Chinese island of Hainan. Typically made with eggs, this scrumptious vegan variation uses canned pumpkin puree instead. Spread on breads (peanut butter and coconut jam sandwiches are yummy), stir into plain soy yogurt, or spoon over nondairy ice cream for a delightful taste sensation. Pandan leaves are available in Asian markets; if you can’t locate them, omit from the recipe and stir in
¹
⁄
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teaspoon of pandan essence or pure vanilla extract along with the other ingredients.

MAKES ABOUT 1
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CUPS

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree (1
³
⁄
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cups)

³
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cup cream of coconut, such as Coco Lopez

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cup packed dark brown sugar

2 pandan leaves, tied in a knot

In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients; bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to between low and medium-low and cook, stirring often, until mixture is thickened and smooth, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove and discard pandan leaves. Let cool to room temperature before serving. Mixture can be refrigerated, tightly covered, up to 2 weeks. Serve chilled or return to room temperature.

{PER SERVING} (per tablespoon, or
¹
⁄
₂₄
of recipe) Calories 60 • Protein 0g • Total Fat 1g • Sat Fat 0g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 13g • Dietary Fiber 1g • Sodium 3mg

Banana-Tofu Pudding

This protein-packed, calcium-rich dessert makes a wonderful after-school snack.

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

12 ounces soft tofu, drained

1 large ripe banana, quartered

¹
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cup cream of coconut, such as Coco Lopez

14 pitted dried red dates (jujubes), soaked in hot water to cover 30 minutes, or until very soft, drained

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

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teaspoon ground ginger

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teaspoon ground cinnamon

Place tofu, banana, cream of coconut, 8 dates, sugar, ginger, and cinnamon in a food processor fitted with the knife blade, or a blender. Process or blend until smooth. Transfer to 6 small bowls and refrigerate, uncovered, 1 hour. Alternatively, cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Serve chilled, garnished with a date.

{PER SERVING} Calories 174 • Protein 5g • Total Fat 6g • Sat Fat 0g • Cholesterol 0mg • Carbohydrate 27g • Dietary Fiber 2g • Sodium 13mg