Doufu Chai

From the Imperial banquet hall to the most humble peasant kitchen, vegetarian dishes have always been included in any special feast. This recipe has been traced to the Long Yin Si Temple in Hangzhou, the ancient capital city of the Southern Song Dynasty (1126-1279). Temple cooking was influenced by Buddhist and Daoist religious philosophy and by the availability of vegetables that lent themselves to subtly sweet but delicious combinations. The extraordinary versatility of bean curd can b