By Linda Yung
Since I started attending Friedman, I do about 90% of my grocery shopping in Chinatown. Sometimes it gets difficult because of the complete absence of breakfast cereals, pastas, granola bars, and other typical American staples, but it is hard to resist the ample choices of cheap, fresh produce and Asian goodies just a few steps away from Jaharis. Here is a simple recipe for a vermicelli stir-fry, comprised of ingredients that you will not find in Shaw’s or Trader Joe’s.
Ingredients: (serves 4)
6oz dried vermicelli
1 package fried soy bean curd
12oz oyster mushroom
6oz beech mushroom
2 stalks of green onion
3 cloves of garlic
4 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 teaspoon of sugar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon of sesame oil
Optional garnish: 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds, best served with chili sauce
- Soak the vermicelli in water for at least thirty minutes. In the meantime, slice the garlic, green onion, mushrooms, and tofu.
- Put a pan over high heat and add vegetable oil. When the oil begins to boil, add the garlic and green onions. Mix gently until browned.
- Then add the mushrooms and stir fry until water is released, which takes less than 5 minutes. Add in the soy sauce and sugar, and then mix in the sliced bean curd.
- Drain the vermicelli, and fold into the mushroom and tofu. Cook for about 3 minutes.
- And finally, drizzle on the sesame oil and sesame seeds.
There you have it, a simple stir-fry that will make for a quick meal made of ingredients that are easily accessible from Chinatown. What are you waiting for? Make your next grocery trip in Chinatown, and spice up your cookbook with some new flavors and ingredients!
*Photos by author
Linda is a double Jumbo and a first year FPAN student. She is an aspiring jet-setter, an amateur restaurant critic, and an addicted NBA junkie. In her free time, she shares her gastronomical adventures at http://spoonhau5.blogspot.com/.
0 comments on “Mushroom and Tofu Vermicelli”