Tau Hu Chung: Vietnamese Vegetarian Pate Recipe

Tàu hũ chưng is one of the many vegetarian equivalents you can find to Vietnamese meat dishes. As I mentioned last week, Tết is coming soon (January 23rd), and you’re supposed to eat vegetarian for the days just before and after the Asian New Year. Usually, I would make mắm chưng thịt (Vietnamese-style meatloaf). This dish is similar, using ingredients such as mushrooms, bean thread noodles and cilantro, but paired with mashed tofu.

The mixture is first steamed, then baked for a few minutes in the oven so the top is slightly golden and dried out. It’s almost like a tofu pâté that can be enjoyed with rice and a bowl of canh (soup) on the side.

1. Info for Tau Hu Chung: Vietnamese Vegetarian Pate Recipe

• Cook Time: unavailable
• Total Time: unavailable
• Servings: 6
• Calories: unavailable

2. Ingredients for Tau Hu Chung: Vietnamese Vegetarian Pate Recipe

• 1 pound firm tofu (see tips)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons ginger garlic paste (see tips)
• 2 teaspoons canola oil (or any neutral oil)
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1/2 (2-ounce) package dried bean thread noodles
• 1 can straw mushrooms, drained and halved
• 6 fresh wood ear mushrooms, finely chopped
• 2 egg whites (optional)
• 4 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons green onions, finely chopped
• 1-1/2 yellow onions, finely diced
• 1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoons mushroom seasoning salt (or regular salt)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1 tablespoon canola oil (or any neutral oil)

3. Directions:

1.   Prepping the bean thread noodles: Place the dried bean thread noodles in a bowl. Don’t forget to cut the little cotton threads and discard them! Soak them in cold water for 20 minutes and drain. Chop into 1 inch threads. Set aside.
2. Cut the tofu into ½-inch slices. Blanch the tofu for about 3-4 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain the liquid. Let the tofu cool a little. Once the tofu is cool enough to handle, mash the boiled tofu with your hands using disposable gloves. The tofu should resemble large-sized cottage cheese curds. Set the tofu aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
4. Reserve 7 cilantro leaves for decoration.
5. In a small pan, heat the oil. Once it’s hot, add the garlic and fry the pieces until golden. Set aside.
6. In the large mixing bowl containing the mashed tofu, add ginger garlic paste, turmeric, fried garlic, chopped onion, red chili powder and black pepper. Using food service disposable gloves, mix well. Add the green onions, cilantro and egg whites (if used). Add the wood ear mushrooms, the halved straw mushrooms and bean thread noodles. Adjust seasoning.
7. Lightly spray some oil on 6 (6-inch diameter) disposable pot pie pans. Remove the excess oil. Fill each tin with the tofu mixture.
8. Fill a large pot with cold water until it barely touches the steamer level. Place all the tins in the steamer (I needed to stack 2 levels to fit all the tins), bring to a boil and reduce the heat to medium-high. Steam for about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat. Allow to rest for about 5 minutes. Remove the tins and transfer to a baking sheet. Garnish withcilantro in the middle of each tin and a sprinkle of black pepper. Bake for 10 minutes until the top is dried.
9. Serve with cơm tấm rice (see tips) and nước chấm sauce and / or tướng ớt (or Sriracha) on the side.