Lemongrass Tofu Noodle Soup

Ingredients


For tofu:

• 12 oz. tofu, cut in 1/2" cubes
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 tsp. lemongrass powder
• 1 tsp. five-spice powder
• 2 tsp. sesame oil

For soup:

• 8 oz. dried Thai rice noodes, linguini-width
• 2 stalks lemongrass OR 2 tbsp. lemongrass powder
• 6 c. veggie stock
• 1 thumb-size piece ginger, thinly sliced
• 1 stalk green garlic, bulb minced and stalk sliced
• 1 spring onion, bulb minced and stalk sliced
• 1 head broccoli, chopped into florets including stems
• 1 1/2 c. cabbage of some sort, chopped
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 3 tbsp. fish sauce 

Procedure

1. Combine soy sauce, 1 tsp. sesame oil, 1 tsp. lemongrass powder and five-spice powder in spouted cup; pour over tofu in mixing bowl and mix with plastic spoon, covering tofu completely. Chill in fridge for at least half an hour.
2. Dunk noodles in a pot of boiling water, cover the pot and turn off the heat; allow the noodles to soften in the hot water for 10 min.; drain and set aside.
3. Put 1 tsp. sesame oil in wide skillet and heat to medium-low; sauteé tofu until slightly browned on all sides and firm, and set aside.
4. Put 1 tsp. sesame oil in a medium-large soup pot and heat to medium-low; 
5. Add ginger, garlic and spring onion bulbs, carrots and lemongrass (include left-over stalk pieces if using fresh), and sauteé until fragrant.
6. Add stock,  bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer 5 min.
7. Add broccoli and cabbage; stir and allow to simmer 2 min.
8. Reduce heat to minimum and add the tofu, garlic and spring onion stalk, and fish sauce; cook for several minutes.
9. Ladle noodles into bowls and serve soup on top.
10. Enjoy!

Verdict

Fantastic - fresh and very flavorful.

Kind-of Ma Po Tofu

Inspired by this recipe from a few days ago and with blocks of tofu and unused spring onions (the latter one of many farmer's market lovelies neglected this past week while conferencing), I decided it was time to get a bit more serious about figuring out how to actually make tofu well. I believe I succeeded.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 blocks tofu, extra firm
• 6 spring onions
• 4 small dried peppers
• 1 tsp sugar
• 6 cloves garlic
• 2 tsp chili-garlic sauce
• splash of chili Madeira (optional, obviously)
• soy sauce
• high-temp oil (I used canola - use peanut, or whatever you've got, just not olive)
• 4 tbsp. flour/2 tbsp. corn starch (which I didn't have)
  

Procedure:

1. Chop/dice garlic and set aside
2. Dice spring onions into 1/2" pieces and set aside
3. Crush dried chilis with sugar and set aside
4. Cut the tofu into 1-inch cubes and leave to steep in hot — but not boiling — water that you’ve gently salted.
5. Heat the oil in a wok or large saute pan over medium heat.
6. Add 2 tsp. chili garlic sauce and stir-fry for 30 seconds or so.
7. Pour in the tofu with about half the water and cook for a minute or so.
8. Add garlic, cook for another minute
9. Add the sugar, chilis, madeira and soy sauce
10. Cover and simmer for five minutes.
11. Add the spring onions, mixing until covered and continue to simmer for another two minutes or so.
12. Add the flour gradually so it's evenly absorbed
13. Serve over rice, and enjoy!

Verdict:

Needed a little soy sauce to finish it off but then - truly excellent. Nice burn but not too much. Perfect comfort food.

Uyen Uyen Vietnamese Restaurant - Calgary, Alberta

After a 3:30 wake-up in DC, the level of comfort one can always expect from a DC-Denver flight on a legacy carrier (i.e., not much), and finally meeting up with the MKD for the Denver-Calgary leg, we found ourselves cruising through the sketchy neighborhoods near the airport in our Lincoln Mark Z, looking for food. Despite the promises of a reliably bad meal offered by all your North American chain favorites (they have Denny's! and Hooters!), the MKD spied a Vietnamese place in a particularly beaten-down strip mall. As far as Vietnamese goes, that's usually a good sign, and Uyen Uyen was no different.

I went with a Tofu Sate Sub, which was enormous on a perfectly toasted bun, and at $5.95CN was definitely a bargain. The tofu was fried crispy outside, tasty and tender inside, and the sub was piled high with sliced carrots, bean sprouts, cilantro, peanuts and cucumber slices. Topped with the sweet and savory tamarind sauce and the a-bit-sweet-but-not-way-too-spicy chili sauce, it was pretty much exactly what I was looking for.

MKD went with #52 - pork chop and fried egg (two of each) on rice - and was quite satisfied, the eggs barely sunny side and fairly seeping into the rice from the first; JD with the shrimp wonton soup, a nice mild broth and wonderfully delicate wrappers on the wontons; and BK with the Bun Nem Nuong - grilled pork balls and spring rolls on vermicelli. More sausage or salami-y than "balls," he nonetheless walked away happy.

The only slight disappointments were fried spring rolls that didn't off too much beyond being hot from the frier, and Vietnamese iced coffee that came pre-prepared and wasn't either that strong or that sweet. MKD's jackfruit bubbletea, however, was "just like" he remembered jackfruit from Hawaii.

This will, I'm guessing, be the only Vietnamese food on this trip, but I head out into the prairie with at least a modest fortification of veggies.