3 Plus 1 (Series 4) - Salmon Tofu 3菜1汤 (系列4) - 琵琶豆腐

So far, I've attempted a few recipes (some yet to blog) from the Channel 8 TV show 3 Plus 1 and bookmarked a dozen of recipes to attempt! I always feel a little intimidated to try new recipes because the result is unknown, whether it would be palatable or accepted by my family. Sometimes, the attempts were failures and unfortunately had to go into the garbage which meant waste of time, money and effort. And worse I have to quickly churn up a new dish to feed the family :p

These days, if I have the time, I may make a small test portion for lunch to see if the result turns out well, and also take proper "nice nice" photos. Natural lighting is better during day time, and seriously I have no time at all to take photos during dinner time.

Luckily this dish 琵琶豆腐 Salmon Tofu (from Episode 1) turned out fairly well. I had to watch that particular video segment several times on xinmsn.com catch-up TV as the recipe provided on iWeekly stated only the ingredients and steps but not the quantity.

I like this dish the moment I saw it because it's very healthy and nutritious, combining tofu, salmon and golden mushroom together. Presentation-wise, the dish is also very elegant. I have a slight phobia towards salmon due to overdose during pregnancy and postpartum days. The taste of tofu actually helps to musk a little bit of the salmon taste, and the water chestnut adds a natural sweetness and refreshing crunch to the soft texture of the salmon and tofu.

While I enjoyed the dish very much, hubby and son were more lukewarm towards it. Well, if I were to pan fry or deep fry it, perhaps it'll be a different story. Probably I'll try it next time to confirm my hypothesis. Ha!

Anyway, I thought this dish could be presented in two ways. By steaming the mashed tofu and salmon on ceramic spoons, it could already be a dish on its own and served directly using the spoon. The participants of the programme took a step further by cooking a golden mushroom gravy as base and serving the salmon and tofu on top.

As to why it's called "Pipa 琵琶" Tofu, from what I learnt from the programme, it's because the shape of the salmon tofu looks like the chinese instrument Pipa.

Salmon Tofu
Makes about 8-9 pieces of salmon tofu *quantity reduced by half compared to the original
(adapted from i Weekly and Channel 8 TV show 3 Plus 1 Series 4 - Episode 1)


Ingredients

Salmon Tofu

• 1/2 pc Silken Tofu
• 1/2 slice Salmon, cut into small cubes
• 3pc Water Chestnut, finely chopped
• 1/2 stalk Spring Onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 stalk Parsley, finely chopped
• 1/2 Egg White
• 2 tsp Corn Starch
• Dash of pepper
• 1/2 tsp Salt

Gravy

• 1 clove Garlic, minced
• 1 packet Golden Mushroom, cut into 3 sections
• 1 tsp Light Soy Sauce
• 1 tsp Oyster Sauce
• Corn starch

Steps

1. Drain the tofu by putting it in a sieve till moisture drains off.
2. Gently mash the silken tofu, add salmon and water chestnut and mix well.
3. Add spring onion, parsley, egg white, corn starch, pepper and salt into the mixture and mix well.
4. Coat 8 ceramic spoons with oil and scoop the salmon tofu mixture into the spoons to form an oval and rounded shape.
5. Place in steamer (water already boiling) and steam for 8 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, heat about a tbsp of oil in a frying pan and stir fry the minced garlic till fragrant.
7. Add the golden mushroom and stir fry till slightly soften.
8. Add some water (just enough to cover the golden mushroom), and season with light soy sauce and oyster sauce (to taste). Then make a slurry with the corn starch to thicken the gravy.
9. Pour the golden mushroom gravy into a plate. Once the salmon tofu is ready, gently scoop the tofu out from the spoon and place onto the gravy.
10. Garnish with parsley and sliced chilli (optional) and serve hot.