Vegetables and Tofu

Vegetable and tofu dishes are always included as part of a multi-course meal on a Chinese dinner table. Vegetable dishes are often the cooling yin counterpoint to spicy yang meat dishes or deep-fried foods. Chinese cuisine boasts an array of vegetable and tofu dishes, many stemming from the Buddhist tradition of a strictly vegetarian diet such as Harvest Delight, which is gorgeous in its simplicity and in its presentation.

I love to create interesting textures in my vegetable dishes. JJ’s Spicy-Crispy Tofu with Green Beans, for example contains cubes of tofu that are flash-fried to crunchy perfection on the outside with a soft pillowy center, then tossed with crisp green beans in a spicy sauce.