Recipe - Best Kung Pao Tofu

TOFU MIXTURE
1 pound Really good firm or
extrafirm tofu such as
Spring Creek *
1 Egg white
1 tablespoon Cornstarch

SAUCE
1 teaspoon Szechuan or Viet chile paste
with garlic
4 tablespoon Good soy sauce
2 teaspoon Dry sherry or _shao xing_
[dealcoholized is fine]
2 teaspoon Red wine vinegar
1 cup Vegetable broth ["mock
chicken" stock is good here
too]
2 teaspoon Sesame oil
4 teaspoon Cornstarch.

VEGETABLES
8 Scallions; cut into 1/2
inch pieces.
1 md Green or red pepper; cut or sliced up
into strips
One fourth cup Carrots; thin cut or sliced up on bias
1 Handful of snow peas.
One fourth cup Sliced mushrooms
1 cup Peanuts; Planters low salt;
(not dry roasted)
5 Dried hot red peppers; or
habaneros to taste
3 tablespoon Peanut oil; (divided)
One fourth teaspoon Crushed red pepper with
seeds

* [can be marinated One half hr. in kosher "mock chicken" broth w/a few
drops of sesame oil and a whiff of ginger and garlic after cutting
up, if you want to be fancy]

Cut tofu into thumbnailsized pieces. If marinating, rinse gently and
drain well. Combine with egg white and cornstarch into a small bowl.
Toss to coat and set aside.

Mix sauce ingredients together, and set aside.

Precut vegetables. Have ready near wok. Have peanuts measured and
ready near wok.

Heat oil in wok over medium high heat. If using chicken, add whole red
pepper pods and tofu and stirfry until tofu is golden and pepper
pods turn blackish, about 4 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and
set aside to drain on paper towels.

If pepper pods have not yet turned black at that point, remove from
chicken or tofu and place back in wok as you are stirfrying the
vegetables.

Add peanut oil to wok if needed. Stirfry scallions, bell peppers,
carrots and crushed red pepper for 30 seconds. Add mushrooms and cook
for 1 minute longer. Add tofu back in and stirfry for one minute.
Add sauce mixture and chow until heated through and thickened. Add
peanuts and mix. Add snow peas to heat through.

Serve over rice.

Sourcetag missing. Chile content goosed well up from original.

Posted to CHILEHEADS DIGEST by rain@wwbbs.otherside.com (Rain) on
Dec 30, 1998, converted by MM_Buster v2.0l.