pí dàn tofu

this* is in response to the thread discussing krà-phrao kràwp khài yiaw mûa @ TAC Quick in which someone lamented not knowing what to do with the box of black preserved "thousand year old" eggs (pí dàn)

recipe is super simple:
2 pí dàn
half a pack of silken tofu (6-8 oz)
3 Tablespoons of finely chopped garlic
2 Tbs of chopped onions.
soysauce paste (not oyster sauce)**
soysauce

prep:
cut 2 pí dàn in half.
take the entire pack of silken tofu, slice it horizontally in half, lay onto plate.
lay the 4 pí dàn halves onto the tofu.
sprinkle garlic & onions all over.
flavor with soysauce paste (typically 3 Tbs) to your liking, add a few drops of soy sauce to add wetness.



serving:
serve chilled.
use a spoon to mash the pí dàn well into the tofu. try not to obliterate the tofu.



* my first recipe post, done in haste; pls excuse it for style, punctuation, accuracy, etc.
** in lieu of soysauce paste, soy sauce only can be used, but it just ain't the same

What is soysauce paste in Chinese? Not the sweet thick soy sauce right?

I use pi dan (pei daan in Cantonese) in congee. Sometimes I cut it up in halves, and eat it as is with pickled ginger (like the Japanese sushi gari). When I was a kid, the adults will eat it like that, and the kids will sprinkle sugar instead.... Back then, everything tasted better with sugar...

Many thanks! I will try it. That means however that I have to buy preserved eggs. I think there was something inherently wrong with the ones I bought long ago. I did try even second one, but it was extremely metallic tasting, especially the yolk. As my wife put it after a nibble and before handing it to me, "That's just skanky!"
So what's a good brand to buy, given that I can't tell what the inside of the box, let alone the shell?

Incidentally, my wife absolutely loves fresh tofu - as is sometimes available for dim sum - custardy and served with a sweet syrup. What's a good source for that?

TIA

saz: your wife's fave* is 'dao fu fah' when you are in Cantonese/Dimsum joints - literal translation would be "tofu flower" - CrazyC can correct me if i'm wrong. in Mandarin would be "dòu hua". and unfortunately, i have NO idea where to buy this "fresh" in Chicago w/o going to a restaurant... if we are in NYC.. it'd be a shack within the flower shop off of Roosevelt and Main in Flushing - and I'd have pictures... but I digress

soysauce paste would be "jìang yóu gāo". you can see here clearly here on Website of Wan Ja Shan (sic for taiwanese pin yin)



the spicy version is listed as : "HOT STEAK SAUCE" and can be seen here:


* this is bit odd, as not many Chinese people truly love this dessert, including several of my ex-gf (both Cantonese & Taiwanese). granted, this is a small data sample... OTOH, I grew up eating steaming fresh dòu hua in street markets of Taipei every weekend. Back then, the syrup had a gingery kick I have yet to find here in the States.

Now you guys have me craving both pi dan tofu and gingery do hua!

Side note: my mom always pre-mashed the pi dan tofu.

Yep... dow fu fah in Cantonese, and dou hua in Mandarin.

Eating this brings back memories of waking up on Sat/Sun mornings, hearing "Dow Fu Fah! Dow Cheung Sui!" blasting from a loudspeaker, and running out into the streets in my PJs to stop the tofu van...

Dou Cheung Sui is soy milk (usually sweetened). You can find the "Tofu Flower" in grocery stores in Chinatown, but they are usually prepackaged. I am not sure whether there is a place in town that makes it fresh.

Phoenix seems to use a simple syrup, just plain sugar and water. Versions I have had include the ginger one, and one that actually puts brown sugar on top, no syrup at all...

My mom would say that eating "Tofu Flower" will make your skin clearer. But then of course she said that coffee makes you stupid, spinach makes you big like Popeye and eggplant makes you short...

TonyC wrote:saz: your wife's fave* is 'dao fu fah' when you are in Cantonese/Dimsum joints - literal translation would be "tofu flower" - CrazyC can correct me if i'm wrong. in Mandarin would be "dòu hua".
<snip>
* this is bit odd, as not many Chinese people truly love this dessert, including several of my ex-gf (both Cantonese & Taiwanese). granted, this is a small data sample... OTOH, I grew up eating steaming fresh dòu hua in street markets of Taipei every weekend. Back then, the syrup had a gingery kick I have yet to find here in the States.

Thanks! Now I know exactly what to ask for (if I can pronounce it mildly similar to what it should be) - instead of asking for "Fresh tofu in syrup."
We've had it first at Phoenix (which we found rather inconsistent). Then much later we had it at Shui Wah. It wasn't on the menu, but my wife noticed it on some other table and asked for it (she would have asked anyways ). It was served with a ginger syrup. That was the best we've had. Never managed to get it since then (sigh!). I could really use some now.

When I mentioned liking "Dao Fu Fah," a Chinese colleague informed me that Chiu Quon bakery sells it. Just go there in the morning - it is a breakfast food. She also let me know that she had heard that Captain's bakery that's across the street has better. So I did a little scouting - went last evening to Captain and was told they only have it on weekends. At Chiu Quon, they had one (the last one) right then - but I had the warm fresh stuff on my mind so I said I'd come back in the morning. A teeny container of fairly thick syrup comes with it, but I asked and it was not the gingery kind.
Before going to bed then I boiled some water with some ginger and sugar.
This morning at 7:45 we were at Chiu Quon and picked up two tubs of Dou Fu Fah ($1.25 each!).

Still warm, soft custardy goodness with a "gingery kick".


My wife says she could have this for breakfast every day.
Thanks TonyC!

I do intend to sample the fare from Captain on Saturday for a comparison.

Chiu Quon Restaurant
2242 S. Wentworth Ave.
773-927-2288

edit: Update on the Dao Fu Fa from Captain is in this Dou hua thread

s4shon wrote:Now you guys have me craving both pi dan tofu and gingery do hua!

Side note: my mom always pre-mashed the pi dan tofu.

Yeah, we usually cut up the tofu and eggs and mix it all together. Also add a touch of sesame oil, no soy sauce paste.