Breathe life into your brown rice noodles, tofu and five-a-day with a coat of peanut and nori, a combination that offers distinct Asian flavours with a crunch.
Yield: Serves 4
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 35 mins
Difficulty Level: 3/5
Ingredients
- 600 g medium tofu
- 150 g dried brown rice vermicelli noodles
- ½ cup (70 g) roasted salted peanuts
- 1 sheet nori, chopped coarsely
- 2 tbsps sesame seeds
- 2 egg whites, beaten lightly
- Vegetable oil, for shallow-frying, 1 tbsp extra
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 tsps finely grated fresh ginger
- 1 tsp cornflour
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) soy sauce
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) vegetarian oyster sauce
- 2 tbsps mirin
- 200 g sugar snap peas, trimmed
- 175 g bok choy, cut into 4 cm lengths
- 1 medium zucchini (120 g), cut into thin strips
- 230 g can water chestnuts, drained, sliced
Steps
01. Place tofu on a large plate lined with paper towel; top with another piece of paper towel and another plate. Stand, tilted, for 10 mins to drain. Cut tofu into 2 cm thick pieces; pat dry with paper towel.
02. Place noodles in a heatproof bowl; cover with boiling water. Stand for 2 mins; drain. Rinse under cold running water; drain.
03. Pulse peanuts and nori in a small food processor until a semi-coarse crumble forms. Stir in sesame seeds. Lightly coat tofu in egg white, then coat in the peanut mixture. Heat 1.5 cm oil in a heavy-based non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Shallow-fry tofu, in batches, for 2 mins on each side or until golden and cooked through. Drain on paper towel. Keep warm.
04. Heat extra oil in a wok over high heat; stir-fry garlic and ginger for 1 min or until fragrant. Add combined cornflour, soy sauce, oyster sauce and mirin to wok with remaining ingredients; stir-fry until sauce boils and thickens slightly, and vegetables are tender but still crisp. Remove from heat. Stir in noodles.
05. Top stir-fried vegetable and noodle mixture with tofu; sprinkle with extra sesame seeds, if you like. Serve straight away.
TIP
Peanut and nori mixture can be made a day ahead. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Photo: bauersyndication.com.au