Fried Vegetarian 'Chicken' Cutlet
Shandong-style vegetarian dish: yam paste wrapped in double-layered tofu skin, deep-fried and shaped like a chicken cutlet. Crispy outside and soft inside, served with sweet bean sauce.
Ingredients
Cooked yam (peeled and mashed)
400g
Shiitake mushrooms (cut into 0.3 cm dice)
25g
Winter bamboo shoots (cut into 0.3 cm dice)
25g
Egg whites
50g
Tofu skin (cut into 7.5 cm long, 3 cm wide oval pieces)
50g
Eggplant stems (inserted to mimic chicken cutlet handles)
25g
Steamed bun (peeled and minced into 0.2 cm crumbs)
25g
Scallions (minced for scallion-pepper paste)
15g
Sichuan peppercorns (for scallion-pepper paste)
3g
MSG
1g
Fine salt
5g
Starch (for egg-white batter)
50g
Peanut oil (for frying, about 100°C / 40% hot)
150g
Cilantro (for plating)
15g
Scallion whites (serving accompaniment)
15g
Sweet bean sauce (serving accompaniment)
50g
Instructions
1
Prepare the filling
Peel the cooked yam and mash it. Dice the shiitake mushrooms and winter bamboo shoots into 0.3 cm cubes. Combine everything in a bowl and mix well with the scallion-pepper paste, MSG, fine salt, and egg whites.
2
Shape the tofu skin cutlets
Cut the tofu skin into 7.5 cm long by 3 cm wide oval pieces. Spread the seasoned yam filling evenly over one piece of tofu skin, top with another piece of tofu skin to cover, then insert an eggplant stem to form 'chicken cutlets'.
3
Make the egg-white batter
Whisk together the egg whites, starch, and fine salt to form a smooth batter.
4
Coat with batter and crumbs
Dip each cutlet evenly in the egg-white batter, then coat thoroughly with the steamed bun crumbs.
5
Deep-fry
Fry in oil heated to about 100°C (40% hot) until golden brown, then remove and drain the excess oil.
6
Plate and serve
Arrange on a platter lined with cilantro and serve with side dishes of scallion whites and sweet bean sauce.
