All recipes › Yong tau foo

How to cook Yong tau foo

Yong tau foo is a Hakka-origin hawker dish of tofu, vegetables and fish paste, with the vegetables and tofu stuffed with a seasoned fish paste filling. The pieces are simmered in a clear anchovy-and-soybean broth and served dry or in soup, with sweet bean sauce, chilli sauce and rice or noodles on the side.

Ingredients

For the stuffing paste

• 400 g skinless fish paste or yellowtail/threadfin fish meat, minced (ask the wet market fishmonger to mince it, or buy ready-made fish paste)
• 100 g minced pork (optional, for extra moisture)
• 2 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked until soft, stems removed, finely diced
• 1 tbsp finely chopped spring onion
• 1 tsp finely grated ginger
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp cold water, added a little at a time

For the pieces to stuff and cook

• 2 blocks (about 300 g) firm tofu, each cut into 4 triangles
• 4 pieces fried tofu puffs (tau pok), halved
• 2 medium brinjal (long purple eggplant), cut into 5 cm pieces, split lengthways but not cut through
• 2 green chillies (not too spicy), halved lengthways, seeds removed
• 1 piece bitter gourd, cut into 2 cm rings, seeds removed
• 4 fresh shiitake or button mushrooms, stems removed
• 8 okra (lady's fingers), trimmed, split lengthways
• 12 ready-made fish balls
• 8 pieces ready-made fish cake slices
• 2 tbsp cornflour, for dusting the cut surfaces

For the broth

• 50 g ikan bilis (dried anchovies), heads and guts removed
• 50 g dried soybeans, rinsed
• 2.5 litres water
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil, for toasting the anchovies
• 1 tsp salt, or to taste
• 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
• 1 tsp sugar

For the sweet bean sauce

• 3 tbsp sweet bean paste (tim jeung)
• 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 1 tbsp water
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp toasted white sesame seeds, for sprinkling

For the chilli sauce

• 6 red chillies, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 3 tbsp rice vinegar or white vinegar
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp water

To serve

• 400 g yellow noodles, thick rice vermicelli (bee hoon) or cooked rice
• 1 handful choy sum or lettuce leaves, blanched
• 2 tbsp fried shallots
• 1 spring onion, finely sliced

Steps

1. Make the broth base3 min
   Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the cleaned ikan bilis and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring, until lightly golden and fragrant. Do not let them go dark or the broth will turn bitter.
2. Simmer the broth45 min
   Add the soybeans and 2.5 litres water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low and simmer, partly covered, for 45 minutes until the broth is pale golden and tastes savoury. Skim off any foam.
3. Make the stuffing paste8 min
   Combine the fish meat, pork if using, mushrooms, spring onion, ginger, salt, sugar, white pepper, cornflour and sesame oil in a bowl. Stir in one direction with a spatula or wet hand for 3 to 4 minutes, adding the cold water a little at a time, until the paste is sticky and springy. Throw the paste against the side of the bowl a few times to firm it up.
4. Prepare the sauces8 min
   Mix the sweet bean paste, hoisin, water, sugar and sesame oil in a small bowl until smooth. For the chilli sauce, blend the chillies, garlic, vinegar, sugar, salt and water until fairly smooth. Taste both and adjust, adding a little more sugar or vinegar if needed. Set aside.
5. Dust the cut surfaces5 min
   Pat the tofu, brinjal, green chillies, bitter gourd, mushrooms, okra and tofu puffs dry. Lightly dust only the cut or hollow surfaces with cornflour so the paste sticks and does not slip out while cooking.
6. Stuff the pieces20 min
   Using a small spoon or wet fingers, press about 1 tbsp of paste into each tofu triangle (cut a slit or small pocket first), brinjal split, green chilli, bitter gourd ring, mushroom cap and okra. Smooth the surface flat. Press a little paste into each tofu puff half as well. Keep your hands damp to stop the paste sticking.
7. Strain the broth3 min
   Strain the broth through a sieve into a clean, wide pot, discarding the anchovies and soybeans (or save the soybeans for eating). Season with 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp white pepper and 1 tsp sugar. Bring back to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat.
8. Cook the firmer vegetables first10 min
   Simmer the stuffed bitter gourd and brinjal, paste side down first, in the broth for 8 to 10 minutes, until the paste is firm and opaque and the vegetables are tender when poked with a chopstick. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate.
9. Cook the tofu, chillies, mushrooms and okra10 min
   In batches, add the stuffed tofu, green chillies, mushrooms, okra and tofu puffs, paste side down for the first 2 minutes. Simmer gently for 6 to 8 minutes. The paste should be firm, springy and white right through, with no raw pink or translucent centre. Remove to the plate.
10. Warm the fish balls and fish cake4 min
    Drop the fish balls and fish cake slices into the broth and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes until the fish balls float and are heated through. Keep the broth at a gentle simmer, not a rolling boil, so the stuffed pieces do not break apart.
11. Prepare the noodles and greens5 min
    Blanch the noodles or bee hoon in a separate pot of boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes until just tender, then drain well and divide among bowls. Blanch the choy sum for 1 minute in the same water until bright green and drain.
12. Assemble the soup version3 min
    Place the noodles and some greens in each bowl. Arrange an assortment of the cooked pieces on top, ladle over hot broth, and top with fried shallots and sliced spring onion.
13. Assemble the dry version3 min
    Toss the cooked noodles with 1 tbsp of the sweet bean sauce and a splash of sesame oil. Top with the pieces, drizzle with more sweet bean sauce, and sprinkle with sesame seeds and fried shallots. Serve a small bowl of hot broth on the side.
14. Serve with sauces
    Serve immediately with small dishes of sweet bean sauce and chilli sauce on the side for dipping.

Tips

• Keep the fish paste cold. If it warms up in your hands while stuffing, chill it for 10 minutes before continuing.
• Dusting cornflour on the cut surfaces is the key to stopping the stuffing from falling out during simmering.
• Keep the broth at a gentle simmer once the stuffed pieces go in. A hard boil breaks the paste apart and clouds the soup.
• Cook vegetables that take longer (bitter gourd, brinjal) before delicate ones (okra, tofu puffs) so everything comes out just done.
• Choose your own mix of items: lotus root, taro or bean curd skin rolls all work if you stuff and simmer them until the paste is firm.

Food safety and allergens

Fish paste and pork stuffing must be cooked until firm, opaque and white right through, with no raw pink or translucent centre. Cool leftovers quickly, refrigerate the broth and pieces separately in covered containers for up to 2 days, and reheat until piping hot.

Contains: egg (yellow noodles often cont, fish, sesame, shellfish (if fish paste or fi, soy, wheat (from hoisin sauce, swee

Watch it being made

• Yong Tau Foo ala Pasar MalamChe Nom · 612,990 views · YouTube
• My Hakka Granny’s Yong Tau Foo Soup & Dry Recipe 祖传客家酿豆腐 Chinese Stuffed Tofu & VegetablesSpice N' Pans · 268,144 views · YouTube
• HOW TO COOK YONG TAU FOO RECIPE /CHINESE SOUPSimple Life Adel · 92,439 views · YouTube

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