Let’s learn how to make Braised Luffa With Egg Beancurd, also known as Sheng Gua Tofu. This is a basic but popular tofu dish served in many Chinese restaurants. This dish is a delicious combination of stir fried juicy texture-filled luffa with smooth deep fried egg bean curd in a rich savoury gravy. Goes perfectly with steamed rice. Try this once, this will be your new favourite one dish meal for lazy weekdays!
Watch How To Make Braised Luffa With Egg Beancurd – Recipe Video
An Easy Classic Beancurd Dish, Braised Luffa with Egg Beancurd
Braised Luffa With Egg Beancurd is a popular vegetable tofu dish and is easily available in most Chinese restaurants. This dish consists of soft and texture-filled luffa with smooth and fragrant deep fried egg bean curd over a thick and creamy gravy. It is a great Chinese stir fry dish that is best served with steamed rice.
This home style dish tastes really good with the luffa’s natural sweetness and spongy texture. The taste of luffa can be a bit grassy, but that makes the difference for this delicious dish. If you have not tried luffa before, you must really try this super easy and delicious dish which you can easily whip up at home. So let’s start cooking!
What is Luffa Vegetable
Luffa is also known by other names. It is sometimes called Angled Gourd, Ridge Gourd, Sweet Gourd or Petola. It is cultivated and eaten as a vegetable, but must be harvested at a young stage of development to be edible. However when the fruit is fully ripened, it is very fibrous. The fully developed fruit is the source of the loofah (a scrubbing sponge). Luffa is a very nutritious and naturally sweet vegetable. It has plenty of anti-oxidants, is rich in iron and aids to relieve heatiness in our body. Luffa is apparently a good milk booster for breast feeding mums too.
Ingredients You Need To Make Braised Luffa With Egg Beancurd
- Luffa (Angled Gourd)
- Egg Beancurd
- Garlic (chopped)
- Ginger (chopped)
- Cooking Oil
- Oyster Sauce
- Light Soy Sauce
- Salt
- Ground White Pepper
- Chicken Stock Granules
- Water
- Cornstarch Mixture
Overview On How to Make Braised Luffa With Tofu
Prepare Ingredients:
- Cut egg beancurd into 4 cm strips
- Peel and cut Luffa into pieces
- Skin and chop garlic and ginger
- Mix together all seasonings in a bowl
Cooking Braised Luffa With Egg Beancurd
- Deep fry egg beancurd till just golden brown and arrange of serving plate.
- Saute chopped garlic and ginger in hot oil till aromatic.
- Add luffa and stir to mix well.
- Add seasonings and water, cook till luffa becomes soft and tender
- Thicken gravy with cornstarch mixture and pour over the fried egg beancurd.
How to Serve Braised Luffa With Egg Beancurd?
This vegetable and beancurd dish is best served with steamed hot rice. Drizzle the gravy over steamed rice and enjoy! With a balanced combination of vegetables and beancurd, this dish is great as a healthy one dish meal too.
Important Tips When Cooking Braised Luffa and Egg Beancurd
- Choose the right angled gourd (luffa) for the dish. When buying luffa, choose one that is as straight as possible from top to bottom. Also the bottom should not be too big. The colour of luffa should be dark green and looks fresh. It should be slightly heavy. Avoid buying luffa with bruise marks or traces of damage. When pressed, the skin must be hard and firm on the inside. If the luffa is old, the skin will be slightly greyish. When pressed, the skin is hard but the insides are soft. This means the seeds are old, fibrous and unpleasant to eat.
- All the sharp edges of the luffa need to be removed. Otherwise the luffa will taste bitter.
- Once the skin of luffa has been removed, wash and clean before cutting. Do not wash the luffa after cutting as they will absorb a lot of water and can release too much water into the dish.
- Do not add too much water when cooking the luffa. You can always add more if needed. Some prefer to have more gravy in the dish to serve with rice. So just adjust to your liking and taste.
Braised Luffa With Egg Beancurd 焖胜瓜豆腐
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Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 2 tube egg beancurd, cut into 4 cm strips
- 1 cup cooking oil
- 1 tbsp garlic, chopped
- 1 tsp ginger, chopped
- 1 Luffa, or sweet gourd, 300g, cut into long strips
Seasonings:
- 1 tsp oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground white pepper
- ¼ tsp chicken stock granules
- 150 ml water
Thickening Solution:
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 2 tbsp water
Have ready all ingredients needed to cook the dish, namely egg beancurd, Luffa, ginger, garlic and cooking oil.
Prepare all the seasonings for the dish, namely oyster sauce, light soy sauce, salt, ground white pepper, chicken stock granules, water and cornstarch solution.
In a bowl, add all the seasonings and mix well for later use.
Then skin and cut luffa into thick pieces. Set aside while we prepare other ingredients.
Next cut the egg beancurd into 4 cm strips or any size suited.
Next peel and chop garlic and ginger. Set aside for later use. And we are ready to cook the dish.
Start by heating up oil in wok. Deep fry the prepared egg beancurd in hot oil till just golden brown. Dish out and drained well of excess oil. Arrange the golden beancurd onto a serving plate.
Clean wok briefly. Then heat up 1 tbsp oil. Sauté chopped garlic and ginger until fragrant. Add in cut luffa and give it a few quick stir till aromatic. Then add in seasonings and water. Bring to a boil, then turn heat to low and cook for about 2 minutes till the luffa soften. Stir well.
Thicken the braised luffa with cornstarch mixture to the right consistency. Pour the braised luffa over the fried beancurd and the plate of braised luffa with egg beancurd is ready to be served hot.
This dish is best served with piping hot rice and enjoyed with hot Chinese tea. So Enjoy!
Instructions
Preparing Ingredients:
Cook Braised Luff With Bean Curd:
Enjoy!
Recipe Video
Notes
- When buying luffa, choose one that is as straight as possible from top to bottom. Also the bottom should not be too big. The colour of luffa should be dark green and looks fresh. It should be slightly heavy about 300-400g per gourd. Avoid buying luffa with bruise marks or traces of damage. When pressed, the skin must be hard and firm on the inside.
- If the luffa is old, the skin will be slightly greyish. When pressed, the skin is hard but the insides are soft. This means the seeds are old, fibrous and unpleasant to eat.
- All the sharp edges of the luffa need to be removed. Otherwise the sweet gourd will taste bitter.
- Once the skin of luffa has been removed, wash and clean before cutting. Do not wash the luffa after cutting as they absorb a lot of water and can release too much water into the dish.
- Do not add too much water when cooking the luffa. You can always add more if needed. Some prefer to have more gravy in the dish to serve with rice. So just adjust to your liking and taste.
