Tahu goreng saus tiram, or fried tofu in oyster sauce, makes for an easy and delicious meal. I love this recipe because it’s quick, doesn’t require very many ingredients, and is really tasty.
Oyster sauce is common throughout Southeast Asia. It is most prominent in Southern Chinese cuisine, where it’s often stir-fried with leafy vegetables. But oyster sauce is also used frequently in Indonesian cooking. There is an Indonesian variant of oyster sauce that’s slightly sweeter than its Chinese counterpart. Indonesians cook it with vegetables, meats, and put it in gravies and broths.
For this recipe, I’ve used a vegetarian oyster sauce – which doesn’t contain oysters, naturally! Instead it’s made using mushrooms and a variety of other ingredients. Vegetarian oyster sauce is a Chinese invention, created to serve the millions of Chinese vegetarians out there. It is able to recreate non-vegetarian dishes without losing too much of the original flavour. I personally love vegetarian oyster sauce, and don’t see it as inferior to the regular non-vegetarian one.
As is customary in Indonesian cooking, this dish calls for the tofu to be fried beforehand, to prevent it from breaking up when stir-fried. Unlike tumis tahu tauge, however, where pre-frying doesn’t ultimately make a difference to the taste, the fried tofu here really enhances the dish and makes the tofu beautifully glazed.
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Tahu Goreng Saus Tiram: Fried Tofu with Oyster Sauce
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Tofu & Tempeh
- Method: Frying
- Cuisine: Indonesian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This quick, easy and delicious recipe calls for tofu to be deep fried and then cooked with oyster sauce and soy sauce. It is easily made vegan and a joy to cook.
Ingredients
- 1 block of firm tofu, 100g
- 50g mustard leaves, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 red chillies, peeled and sliced
- 2 bird’s eye chillies, peeled and sliced
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tsp sweet or dark soy sauce
- 3 tbsp water
- a dash of white pepper
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Cut the tofu into 1 inch by 1 inch squares. Fry till golden, about 5 min. Set aside.
- Mix the oyster sauce and soy sauce with the 3 tbsp water. Set aside.
- In a wok or frying pan, heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat.
- Add the garlic and chillies. Saute till fragrant, about 2 min.
- Add the mix of oyster sauce, soy sauce and water.
- Add a dash of pepper and salt. Remember to half the amount of salt you’d normally use, because the sauces contain salt.
- Stir until the sauce thickens, about 1-2 min.
- Add the tofu and mustard leaves. Stir fry for 3 min. Turn off the stove and serve.
Notes
- For a healthier version, feel free to skip the pre-frying and use the tofu as is – that is, if you don’t mind scrambled tofu.
- Feel free to use regular oyster sauce instead of the vegetarian version, of course!
Keywords: Quick & easy, common ingredients, garlic
