This is a quick and easy recipe that you can eat as a side dish. The tofu is also a great base for my upcoming recipes: Dau Hu Nhoi Cha Tom (Vietnamese Shrimp-Paste Stuffed Tofu) and Yong Tau Foo (Chinese Stuffed Tofu).
Dau Hu Chien (Vietnamese Fried Tofu)
You'll need:
1 block of soft tofu, or whichever firmness you wish
About 1/2 cup rice flour
Oil for deep-frying
Dipping Sauce:
Soy sauce
Vinegar
Chili sauce
Scallions
Heat wok or fry pan to medium-high. Meanwhile, remove tofu from container and drain excess liquid. Then take a paper towel and gently press to absorb excess moisture.
Cut tofu into 2-inch cubes. Pour about 1/4 cup rice flour onto a plate. Gently press tofu into rice flour until each side is lightly coated. Add more flour if needed until all the tofu you'd like to fry is coated. Deep fry until golden.
I like one light layer of flour just to give the tofu a bit of crispness. If you'd like a thicker coating, since the tofu quickly absorbs the rice flour, just press the tofu into the rice flour again. Then deep fry.
Serve with a dipping sauce mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, chili sauce, and chopped scallions. Eat as a snack or as a side dish with rice.
Enjoy!
Who made my recipe for dau hu chien?
Hedgehog of Diary of a Novice Cook said, "I used to use all-purpose flour but it seems like rice flour makes the tofu a bit crispier."
My other tofu recipes:
Chinese Hot and Sour Soup
Dau Hu Chien Sot Ca Chua (Vietnamese Fried Tofu with Tomato Sauce)
Dubu Chorim (Korean Fried Tofu with Soy Sauce) Ma Po Tofu (Chinese Pockmarked Old Lady's Tofu)
Soon Dubu Kimchi Chigae (Korean Soft Tofu and Kimchee Stew)
Taiwanese Popcorn Tofu Thit Heo Kho Voi Dau Hu (Vietnamese Braised Pork with Tofu)
*****
1 year ago today, lemon garlic roast chicken, fried bananas, sauteed oxtail and beef tongue at Versailles Cuban Food Restaurant - Culver City.
Ooooh! Such beautiful golden cubes! I didn't know about coating with rice flour--will have to try it next time. Thanks! :)
ReplyDeleteThis is such a simple dish but it always seems to hit the spot for me. One of our friends lightly coats the cubes with cornstarch before frying. I'll have to try it with both and see if there is a difference.
ReplyDeleteMCR,
ReplyDeleteOoh, I'd love to see how Indonesians fry tofu. Hmm. Must think up some dishes to bring to your virtual party.
Tia,
Your dishes always look so lovely. I didn't figure there'd be something you didn't know.
Christine,
Rice flour is a lighter coating than cornstarch. It also doesn't clump up as much. If you look at my Taiwanese popcorn recipe, that was made with cornstarch. Quite a difference in texture.
I made these tofu and for some reason when I Braised it the coat will start to fall off. It doesn't stick to the tofu like in your picture. What could be the problem?
ReplyDeleteBong,
ReplyDeleteMaybe you didn't blot out enough of the water so the flour couldn't stick? If you look at my fried tofu with tomato sauce recipe, I show steps on how to blot out the excess water and there's a photo of what the tofu looks like coated in flour. Hope that helps!
Thank you very much! Yes I didn't blot out all the water
DeleteBong,
ReplyDeleteGlad that was an easy fix then!