Dry-Fried Beans with Minced Tofu

Name: Dry-Fried Beans with Minced Tofu
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: Asian, Chinese
Ingredients: 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns; 280g tofu, pressed; 250g shiitake mushrooms; 4 tbsp rapeseed oil; 400g green beans, trimmed; 2cm ginger, peeled and grated; 4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed; 4 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped; 4 red chillies (optional); 3 tbsp Shaoxing wine; 3 tbsp light soy sauce; Boiled or steamed jasmine rice, to serve

6 steps

Prep:20minCook:25min

When I had my first blistered and wrinkly Sichuanese dry-fried beans, I ate them like McDonald’s fries. They were salty, soft, and crunchy, which in my book are all bywords for addictive. Traditionally, the beans would have been dry-roasted, but these days, in most restaurants at least, they’re deep-fried and served with pork. In my version, I’ve fried them hot and hard in a little oil and served them over a soft mound of tofu seasoned with some of the finest ingredients from the Sichuanese pantry. You’ll need a wide pan with a lid, a food processor, and a pestle and mortar (or something heavy for bashing the peppercorns with).

Updated at: Wed, 16 Aug 2023 21:07:36 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Great

Glycemic Index

Low

Glycemic Load

Low

Nutrition per serving

Calories259 kcal (13%)

Total Fat17.6 g (25%)

Carbs15.6 g (6%)

Sugars5.8 g (6%)

Protein10.9 g (22%)

Sodium642.9 mg (32%)

Fiber5 g (18%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

4 servings

1 tspsichuan peppercorns

280gtofu

pressed

250gshiitake mushrooms

4 Tbsprapeseed oil

400ggreen beans

2 cmginger

trimmed and finely chopped

4red chillies

optional

3 Tbspshaoxing wine

3 Tbsplight soy sauce

jasmine rice

Boiled or steamed, to serve

Instructions

Step 1

First, roughly bash the peppercorns to a rough powder and put to one side. In a food processor, blitz the tofu and mushrooms until they’re broken down into lentil-sized pieces.

Step 2

Heat the oil in a wide frying pan over a high heat and, once hot, carefully add the beans, keeping them as much as possible in a single layer, so each one is touching the base of the pan - you may find this easier to do in two batches. Leave to cook for three minutes, then turn using tongs or two wooden spoons. The beans and oil might spit: if they do, keep a lid cocked over them.

Step 3

Cook the beans for another six or so minutes, turning them again after three minutes, until they look withered and blackened. Turn off the heat, then scoop the beans on to a plate, leaving the oil in the pan.

Step 4

Return the pan to the heat, and add a tablespoon more oil, if need be. Add the tofu and mushroom mixture to the hot oil and cook, stirring frequently to make sure it doesn’t stick to the pan, for up to 10 minutes, or until reduced and turning crisp and browned in places.

Step 5

Add the ginger, garlic, spring onions, chillies and crushed Sichuan peppercorns, stir to mix, and cook for three minutes more.

Step 6

Return the beans to the pan with the Shaoxing wine and soy, stir for a couple of minutes, then transfer to a serving plate. Serve immediately with jasmine rice.