Crispy Noodles
Buddha's Delight, a.k.a. Luo Han Zhai! This is a classic dish with a ton of different variants - in this video, we wanted to teach you a bit about the history, the context of the dish within the overarching category of Chinese vegetarian food, as well as teach you a Cantonese restaurant version which's smothered over fried noodles.
INGREDIENTS
For the quick stock:
* Dried Shiitakes 15g
* Dried Kelp ~8g
* Water, 1L; plus the shiitake soaking liquid
Buddha's Delight Components:
* Snow fungus 5g
* Wood ear 5g
* Dried shiitake mushroom 20g
* Button mushrooms 60g
* Carrot, 60g
* Baby corn 60g
* Baby bok choy 60g
To fry:
* Ginger, ~1 inch, minced
* Liaojiu, a.k.a. Shaoxing wine 1 tbsp
* Quick stock from above, ~2 cups
* Oyster sauce or- vegetarian oyster sauce, 2 tbsp
* Sugar, 1/2 tsp
* Seasoning: salt, 1/4 tsp; MSG 1/8 tsp; white pepper powder 1/8 tsp
* Slurry of 1 tbsp cornstarch - or preferably potato or tapioca starch - mixed with 2 tbsp of the shiitake soaking liquid
* Toasted sesame oil, 1 tsp
For the noodles:
* Dried noodles, 60g
* Oil for frying, ~1.5 cups (for a round bottomed wok, you will likely need a good bit more if using a pot)
PROCESS:
*For the quick 'stock':*
- Soak the shiitake mushrooms and the kelp in cool water, in the fridge overnight (for reference, the kelp actually only needs 30 minutes, but longer is no problem).
- Thoroughly rinse the kelp, and give the mushrooms a quick rinse as well. Add the mushrooms, kelp, the mushroom soaking liquid, and the water to a pot. Get up to a boil then down to a simmer, quickly skim, and cook at a heavy simmer - covered - for 30 minutes.
- Strain, reserve.
*For the Buddha's Delight:*
- Soak the snow fungus, wood ear, and shiitake in the fridge overnight.
- Squeeze and rinse the shiitake, reserving the soaking liquid, and cut into 1/2 cm sheets. Slice off the hard 'root' of the snow fungus, and cut into ~8 pieces. Slice off the hard 'root' of the wood ear, and cut each ear into 2-3 pieces. Slice the button mushrooms into 1/2 cm sheets. Slice the carrot into 3mm sheets. Slice the corn into ~1cm sections along a biased wedge. Chop the bok choy into ~1.5 inch sections.
- Blanch the ingredients: 30 seconds for bok choy, 1 minute for the carrot and corn, 1 minute for button mushrooms, 2 minutes for snow fungus and wood ear.
- Add about 2 tbsp of peanut oil to a pot, and fry the ginger over a medium low flame. Once fragrant, ~30 seconds, add in the shiitake mushrooms and the button mushrooms. Up the flame to high. Stir fry for ~1 minute, the swirl in the wine. Add in the snow fungus and the wood ear, and ~30 second fry. Add in the stock, the oyster sauce, and the sugar. Get up to a boil and down to a simmer, and let that simmer - covered - for 15 minutes.
- Add in the carrot and the corn. Simmer for ~5 minutes, covered.
- Add in the bok choy and the seasoning and mix. Over a medium low flame, add in the slurry bit by bit, until it's reached a thickness that's *just* before a spoon coating consistency. Drizzle in the sesame oil, out.
TO FRY THE NOODLES:
- Boil your noodles until they're done. To cool them down, transfer to a strainer and pull/jostle the noodles until they're no longer hot to the touch. Arrange the noodles in a 'cake' on a plate.
- Heat up your oil until it hit ~180C. Slide in the noodles, and fry each side for ~2 minutes, or until good and golden brown.
How to cook Crispy Noodles:
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