The Everything Chinese Cookbook (54 page)

pound (1
cups) soft tofu

8 Chinese dates

1 large banana, sliced

2 tablespoons honey

½ teaspoon powdered ginger

1. Drain the tofu. Soak the Chinese dates in water for 30 minutes or until softened. Cut in half, removing the pit.
   
2. Process half of the block of tofu in a blender or food processor until smooth. Add the other half and process. Add the banana, honey, dates, and powdered ginger. Process until smooth.
   
3. Pour into small bowls and chill for 1 hour.
   

6 hard-boiled eggs, cooled

½ cup brewed black tea

1 dried tangerine peel

1 cinnamon stick

3½ cups water

1. Tap each egg very gently with the back of a spoon, until tiny lines form. Try not to actually crack the eggs.
   
2. Add eggs, black tea, tangerine peel, and cinnamon stick to 3½ cups water and bring to a boil. Simmer, covered, for 2 hours. Turn off the heat, and let the eggs sit in the liquid for a few more hours before serving.
   
3. To serve, remove the shell and cut into quarters.
   

Cracked Egg

Don't worry if you crack the egg — the effect of the marbled lines crisscrossing the cooked egg should still be visible.

½ cup mung bean sprouts

4 snow peas

¼ red bell pepper

2–4 tablespoons oil

1 oyster mushroom cap, thinly sliced

1–2 button mushrooms, thinly sliced

6 eggs

¼ teaspoon salt

teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

½ teaspoon sugar

1 green onion, cut into 1-inch pieces

6 ounces cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined

1. Blanch the bean sprouts and snow peas by plunging them briefly into boiling water and quickly removing. Drain well.
   
2. Remove the seeds from the red pepper and cut into thin slices about 1 inch long. Chop the snow peas.
   
3. Add ½ tablespoon oil to a preheated wok or skillet. When oil is hot, sauté the oyster mushroom slices briefly, just until they collapse. (You can sauté the button mushrooms as well or leave them raw.) Remove from the wok and set aside.
   
4. Lightly beat the eggs. Stir in the salt, pepper, oyster sauce, and sugar. Mix in the vegetables and the cooked shrimp.
   
5. Add 2 tablespoons oil to a preheated wok or skillet. When the oil is hot, add a quarter of the egg mixture. Cook until the bottom is cooked, then turn over and cook the other side. Continue with the remainder of the egg mixture, adding more oil if necessary, making 4 omelets. Enjoy as is, or serve with Egg Foo Yung Hoisin Sauce (page 204).
   

Egg Foo Yung Without the Sauce

Although they taste fine on their own, egg foo yung dishes are normally meant to be accompanied by a savory sauce. If not serving a sauce, consider adding small amounts of powerful seasonings such as chili paste or hoisin sauce to the egg mixture.

½ red bell pepper

1 cup mung bean sprouts

6 eggs

¼ teaspoon salt

teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry

½ teaspoon sugar

4 mushrooms, thinly sliced

1 green onion, thinly sliced

1 cube fermented bean curd, mashed

2–4 tablespoons oil

1. Remove the seeds from the red pepper and cut into chunks. Blanch the bean sprouts by plunging them briefly into boiling water, and drain.
   
2. Lightly beat the eggs. Stir in the salt, pepper, rice wine, and sugar. Add the vegetables and mashed bean curd. Mix well.
   
3. Add 2 tablespoons oil to a preheated wok or skillet. When the oil is hot, add a quarter of the egg mixture. Cook until the bottom is cooked, then turn the omelet over and cook the other side. Continue with the remainder of the mixture, making 4 omelets. Serve with an egg foo yung sauce or soy sauce.