Shrimp with Shredded Spice Tofu (五香豆腐絲蝦, Ng5 Hoeng1 Dau6 Fu6 Si1 Haa1)

I saw two ingredients at my local Asian supermarket that I’ve never cooked before – long baby bok choy sprouts and shredded spice tofu. As always I bought them before knowing what to do with them. Just those two ingredients alone would make a good dish, and I’ve had a similar dish using white shredded tofu at a local Shanghai restaurant, but I decided to add shrimp to the recipe. Long baby bok choy sprouts resemble spinach in form, but retains its crunch when cooked, and are the young long sprouts of the bok choy plant. The long sprouts go well with shredded tofu which is also long in length. I used spiced shredded tofu instead of the white version, which is more common, to give added flavor to the dish. If you can’t find long baby bok choy sprouts (also called long bok choy muy) at your local Asian supermarket, you can substitute baby bok choy (小白菜, siu² baak⁶ coi³). Regular firm tofu, cut into strips, can be substituted for the shredded tofu.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

¾ lb.	375 g.	Shrimp meat (蝦仁, haa1 jan4), shelled, deveined, and cut lengthwise
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
1 lb.	500 g.	Long baby bok choy sprouts (白菜苗, baak6 coi3 miu4)

½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press

8 oz.	227 g.	Shredded spice tofu (五香豆腐絲, ng5 hoeng1 dau6 fu6 si1) – 1 package
		Oil for cooking

 

Sauce Ingredients

2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
½ Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
1 Tbs.	30 ml.	Water

 

Equipment

14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan

 

Preparation Instructions

1. If using frozen shrimp, thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Prepare the shrimp meat by removing the shells and veins, and then using a sharp knife, make a cut half the depth of the shrimp for the length of the shrimp (i.e. don’t cut the shrimp in half, but keep it intact). Marinate the shrimp for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator with the corn starch, ground white pepper and sesame oil. If marinating the shrimp overnight, take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
2. Crush the ginger and garlic in a garlic press.
3. Wash and cut the ends off the long baby bok choy sprouts. If long baby bok choy sprouts are not available, baby bok choy (小白菜, siu² baak⁶ coi³) can be substituted.
4. Open the shredded spice tofu package and discard any liquid.
5. Prepare and mix the sauce in a small bowl: add the soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. In another small bowl, prepare the corn starch slurry by mixing the corn starch and water together.

Cooking Instructions

1. Heat a wok or pan over high heat and before adding oil. Add the shredded spice tofu, stir fry, and then remove them to a bowl.
2. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the crushed ginger and garlic. Quickly stir fry the ginger and garlic before adding more oil and then the long baby bok choy sprouts. Stir fry the long baby bok choy sprouts (the volume will decrease drastically) before adding the shredded spice tofu and the shrimp back into the wok. Stir fry all the ingredients together.
3. When the shrimp have just turned pink, add the sauce ingredients to the wok and stir fry the ingredients together. Add the corn starch slurry to thicken the sauce and mix all the ingredients together. Put the cooked ingredients into a serving dish and serve with steamed rice.