We were both watching the episode of ‘Hey Chef!’, 《大厨你在家吗?!》some time in December last year. The celebrity chef, Ku Keung, was making silken egg tofu from scratch usiing the unsweetened Nutrisoy Soya Milk, a brand of soy milk product for which he was a spokesperson. We were both amazed by the result of this simple yet healthy recipe – nicely formed tofu blocks which looked silken soft and without bubbles. How was this possible?
The guy decided that he wanted to take this a tad further. He went to do some research on tofu making and originally intended to really, REALLY, make tofu from scratch (i.e. boil soy beans and add gypsum for solidification). It was after much convincing that he agreed to give this simpler version a try first, before heading into the advanced level of tofu preparation next time.
Yes, next time. The bottle of gypsum is already sitting in the kitchen cabinet. We shall see…
Ingredients (tofu):
- Unsweetened soy milk (Nutrisoy): 500ml
- Egg: 6
- Salt: 1/2 tsp
Method (tofu):
- Pour soy milk into a mixing bowl.
- Add eggs and salt into the milk. Gently whisk everything together without the mixture foaming (to prevent bubbles from forming inside the tofu).
- Pour mixture into a baking loaf pan. Steam for 30 min. Cover lid with a piece of cloth to prevent condensation from dripping back into the pan. Alternatively, use a large wooden pair of chopsticks to block the lid at the side of the wok so as to prevent it from covering the wok completely. This ensures that condensation on the lid will not drip directly onto the tofu.
- Leave to cool and refrigerate for 24 hrs.
- Invert tofu onto a plate. Slice into 10 medium-sized pieces.
- Heat oil in wok for shallow-frying.
- Place tofu slices into wok. Cook each side for about 1 min till browned.
- Remove tofu from wok and place onto kitchen towel to absorb oil.
Ingredients (topping):
- Oil: 1 cup (for shallow frying)
- White onion: 1, diced
- Minced pork: 120g
- Crab meat: 4 sticks, finely chopped
- Dark soy sauce: 1 tbsp
- Oyster sauce: 2 tbsp
- White pepper: to taste
- Water: 1/2 cup
- Corn starch mixture: 1 tbsp corn starch + 2 tbsp water
- Chinese parsley: 1/2 stalk, chopped
Method (topping):
- Heat oil in wok. Add onions and stir-fry till fragrant.
- Add pork. Stir-fry to break them up.
- Add crab meat, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce and pepper. Stir to mix.
- Add water. Leave to braise for 30 seconds.
- Add corn starch mixture. Turn off heat.
- Plate tofu and top with pork mixture. Garnish with chopped parsley to serve.
Disclaimers:
- This recipe was kindly adapted from Chef Ku Keung, as advertised on the Nutrisoy milk packaging and its TV advertisement. We added 250ml more soy milk than was indicated in the recipe.
- The topping was my personal creation, using whatever ingredients I could rummage from the fridge. The Nutrisoy soy milk packaging has its version of tofu ‘treasure boxes’ which you could give a try too.
- For a simpler version of tofu recipe, you can refer to ‘A Dish Of Steamed Tofu With Colourful Toppings‘.
Serving:
10 medium-sized tofu
