Tofu with Beansprouts | Taukwa with Taugeh

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Yields: 2 Servings Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 5 Mins Cook Time: 15 Mins Total Time: 20 Mins

This tofu with beansprouts dish is so easy I don’t even know if it warrants a recipe. Although I suppose for people who didn’t grow up in an Asian household, the combination of ingredients can seem quite random. Sometimes, beansprouts are used as a garnish, like in Tahu Goreng (Indonesian Deep Fried Tofu). But, my favourite way to eat them is like this. Just a huge mound of beansprouts stir-fried all at once.

When I was about 6, my maternal grandmother or ah ma came to live with us. At that time, Singapore was running an aggressive Speak Mandarin campaign that basically told everyone that dialects were for uneducated, low class people. The result was that whole generations like mine lost the ability to speak their ancestral dialects. My ah ma spoke mostly Teochew and a little Mandarin. We couldn’t communicate much, so instead of having clear moving memories her, I just have snapshots of her in my mind, images of her around the house.

Often when I got home from primary school, my ah ma would have prepared lunch. Three dishes will always remind me of her: fried pomfret, stir-fried green beans with carrots, and this tofu with beansprouts or taukwa with taugeh. My ah ma is now long gone but I think of her whenever I see this dish. The simplicity of this down-to-earth dish, its taste and smell, will always evoke a feeling of home for me.

This is probably the most unpretentious, unexciting home-cooking dish in the world. I love it.

PS: In case you are wondering why it says taukwa with taugeh instead of taukwa char taugeh, it’s because I reserve my right as a Singaporean to mix languages.

 

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Ingredients

0/7 Ingredients
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Instructions

0/11 Instructions
  • Peel all the caps (bean shells) and tails (roots) off your bean sprouts. Only heathens leave them on. But seriously it affects the mouth feel.
  • Slice the spring onions diagonally and separate the whites from the greens.
  • Cut the tofu into thin rectangular slices like this.
  • Pan-fry the tofu over medium heat in a little oil until golden on both sides.
  • Dice the garlic. Heat 0.5 tbsp of oil over medium heat and fry the garlic briefly.
  • Add the beansprouts and toss for about a minute.
  • Add the spring onion whites and a pinch of salt and toss.
  • Add the Chinese cooking wine. This is the one I like for this dish. Toss.
  • Add the tofu back in together with the vegan oyster sauce. Yes, then toss again.
  • When the bean sprouts are all soft, add the spring onion greens and toss another another minute.
  • Serve hot with rice or porridge.

Tags

#bean sprouts  #tofu  

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