tau kwa (firm toufu) with minced meat, garlic and fermented black bean sauce

I am not a huge fan of toufu. I will eat it, but it is not on my list of favourite things to eat.

But I do know toufu is good for you. So I try to cook it occasionally. The trick with getting everyone at home (including the LAM) to eat toufu is to inject flavour into the dish because toufu by itself is oh-so-bland.

Today I cooked tau kwa, which is a firm toufu. I paired it with garlic and fermented black beans because they are pungent and packed full of flavour.

When I cook tau kwa, I always cut them into smaller, bite-sized cubes, coat them with a little corn flour and fry them first. Again, frying the tau kwa gives it more flavour and makes it a lot tastier.

Once they have turned a slightly darker shade of brown, I transferred them onto some paper towels to drain.

In the meantime, I seasoned the minced pork (or chicken) with light soy, sesame oil, white pepper and corn flour.

In a heated wok, I stir-fried minced garlic for 30 seconds, then added the pork.

Once the pork was about half-cooked, I added fermented black beans, black bean sauce and XO sauce.

When everything was mixed, I added enough water to make a gravy. I like quite a bit of gravy so I added more water. Feel free to adjust accordingly.

Just before serving, I ladled the gravy over the tau kwa.

It is amazing when a little more effort is made, something bland can become something so tasty.

RECIPE
Tau Kwa (Firm Toufu) with Minced Meat, Garlic and Fermented Black Bean Sauce (Serves 4-6)

Ingredients:
4 pieces tau kwa, each cut into 4 cubes
1/4 cup corn flour, for coating
300g minced pork (or chicken)
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon fermented black beans
2 teaspoon black bean sauce
1 teaspoon XO sauce
1 large chilli, minced (optional)
1.5-2 cups water

Seasoning for minced pork (or chicken):
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon corn flour

Method:
1. Coat tau kwa lightly with corn flour. Fry in hot oil until light brown in colour. Transfer onto paper towels to drain. Set aside.
2. Heat vegetable oil in wok. Stir-fry garlic for 30 seconds then add minced meat. When the meat is half-cooked, add fermented black beans, black bean sauce, XO sauce and chilli, if using. Stir to combine.
3. Add water. Stir. Check seasoning. Once the gravy has thickened, ladle gravy over tau kwa.
4. Serve immediately, with rice.