Shrimp, tofu, and mixed veggie stir fry

Short post today…been at a workshop all week and as good and interesting as it’s been, it’s been mentally draining. It’s also north of town, in an area where I don’t frequent too often, so I’ve been spending a little time exploring (and eating at New Jang Su BBQ, yum!).

Anyway, this is something I whipped up a couple weeks ago. I had this at a friend’s birthday pot luck and really REALLY liked it (and it’s healthy!) and figured I’d try to make it. So, being terrible at “figuring out” what goes into a dish, I went for my trusty cookbooks and sure enough, found a recipe in Grace Young’s Breath of a Wok. I can’t put into words how much this book (and a couple others) but it’s really helped me understand some of the techniques that’re used as well as to appreciate all of the different ingredients and tastes a dish may have. And some of the dishes are extremely simple too, just the way I like it!

One thing I really liked about this dish in particular was the use of lotus roots. Sometimes I’d end up getting them in one of the Chinese clay pot dishes, but that’s usually something I can’t manage at home (well, especially lacking a clay pot). And after finding them at Russo’s (among many other uncommon ingredients), I set off to my task, and it turned out alright!

Shrimp, tofu, and mixed vegetable stir fry

Serves 4 with rice
Time : 45 minutes

Ingredients:
- 1 large lotus root (4-6 oz)
- 2 tbsp veggie broth
- 2 tsp Shao Hsing rice wine
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
- Dash of white pepper
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp Ketjap Manis, dark sweet soy sauce
- 1 cup sugar snap peas
- 1 carrot, thinly sliced
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined
- 1 container fried tofu, ends up being about 10-12 pieces
- 1 zucchini, sliced
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 2-3 cloves minced garlic
- 2-3 pieces ginger, sliced
- 4 scallions, sliced

Method:
1. Prepare the vegetables. Peel and slice lotus root and carrot. Remove strings from snap peas, slice zucchini. Peel and devein shrimp, slice tofu. Combine broth, rice wine, sugar, soy sauce, ½ tsp salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
2. Bring 1-2 quarts of water to boil over high heat, add the remaining ½ tsp salt. Add lotus root, boil for 30 seconds. Add sugar snaps, boil another 30 seconds. Add carrots, boil another 30 seconds. Add zucchini, boil 30 more seconds. Drain vegetables in a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold water.
3. Heat a wok over high heat. Add oil, garlic, and ginger, let sizzle. Add the shrimp in, stir fry until about halfway cooked through. Add the scallions and tofu, toss well for a few seconds. Add the vegetables, stir fry for another minute. Add in the sauce mixture, stir fry for another minute or so.
4. Serve over rice.