Bear Paw Tofu
Pan-fried tofu, golden on both sides and shaped to resemble bear paws, braised with sliced pork for a richly fragrant, golden-red finish.
Ingredients
Cleaned green garlic sprouts (cut into horse-ear shape)
as needed
Pixian doubanjiang (chopped to a paste)
50 g
Sesame oil
10 g
Wet starch
15 g
Mixed oil
125 g
MSG (monosodium glutamate)
1 g
Fatty lean pork (cut into slices 5 cm long, 2 cm wide, and 0.3 cm thick)
as needed
Tofu (cut into slices 6 cm long, 3 cm wide, and 0.6 cm thick)
as needed
Meat broth
to taste
Ginger and scallion slices
as needed
Soy sauce
as needed
Shaoxing wine
as needed
Instructions
1
Preparation
Cut the cleaned green garlic sprouts into horse-ear shapes; chop the Pixian doubanjiang into a paste; cut the fatty lean pork into slices 5 cm long, 2 cm wide, and 0.3 cm thick; cut the tofu into slices 6 cm long, 3 cm wide, and 0.6 cm thick.
2
Pan-fry the tofu
Place a wok over medium heat, add 50 g of mixed oil, lay the tofu slices in the wok one by one and pan-fry until light golden, then add another 25 g of mixed oil and continue frying, flipping as needed. Once both sides of the tofu are golden brown, remove and set aside.
3
Stir-fry and braise
Add more mixed oil to the wok and heat until 70% hot. Add the pork slices and stir-fry until separated. Add the Pixian doubanjiang and stir-fry until fragrant and colored. Add the ginger and scallion slices and stir-fry until fragrant. Pour in the meat broth, add the tofu and soy sauce, stir to combine, add the Shaoxing wine and bring to a boil. Reduce to low heat and simmer to absorb the flavors.
4
Thicken and serve
Add the green garlic sprouts and MSG. Thicken with wet starch to a medium-thick consistency, stir to combine, reduce the sauce until glossy with an oil sheen, drizzle with sesame oil, transfer to a plate, and serve.
