A comforting traditional Hakka favourite with juicy stuffed tofu puffs, savoury homemade flavours and plenty of satisfying texture. Easy to serve as part of a family meal or enjoy with steamed rice.
Watch How To Make Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu Puffs – Recipe Video
Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu Puffs (客家酿豆腐卜) is a comforting traditional Hakka dish made by filling golden fried tofu puffs with a savoury mixture of hand-chopped meat, glutinous rice, dried shiitake mushrooms and dried shrimp. The stuffed tofu puffs are steamed until juicy and tender, then finished with a flavourful savoury sauce.
The airy tofu puffs soak up the sauce beautifully, while the meat filling stays juicy with a gentle chew from the glutinous rice. Dried shrimp and shiitake mushrooms add plenty of natural umami, making every bite especially flavourful.
Simple, hearty and full of traditional home-cooked flavour, these Hakka stuffed tofu puffs can be served as an appetiser, as part of a family-style meal, or with steamed rice for a satisfying main dish.
Why You’ll Love This Hakka Stuffed Tofu Recipe
Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu Puffs combines comforting flavours, enjoyable textures and the homemade character of traditional Hakka cooking. It is a versatile dish that can be steamed and topped with sauce, added to soup, braised or fried. For many people, it also brings back fond memories of home-cooked family meals.
- Generous savoury filling: Each tofu puff is packed with hand-chopped pork, glutinous rice, shiitake mushrooms, dried shrimp and aromatics.
- Enjoyable contrasting textures: The tender, airy tofu puff surrounds a juicy filling with a gentle chew from the glutinous rice.
- Rich umami flavour: Dried shrimp, mushrooms, oyster sauce and soy sauce add plenty of savoury depth.
- Ideal for sharing: This hearty dish is well suited to family meals and gatherings.
- Detailed visual guidance: Step-by-step photographs and recipe video to show how to prepare, fill, steam and finish the tofu puffs.
What is a Tofu Puff?
A tofu puff is a type of deep-fried tofu with a golden exterior and a light, airy centre. The frying process gives it a slightly chewy texture and creates hollow spaces that are ideal for holding generous amounts of filling.
Tofu puffs are commonly added to Asian soups, noodles, curries, steamboat dishes and Hakka stuffed tofu. Their airy interior readily absorbs the flavours of broths and sauces, giving them a rich and satisfying taste. In Malaysia, tofu puffs can usually be found at wet markets, supermarkets and grocery stores that carry fresh or refrigerated tofu products.
Ingredients for Making Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu Puff
Main Ingredients:
- Tofu Puffs
- Glutinous Rice
- Dried Shiitake Mushrooms
- Minced Meat
- Dried Shrimp
- Carrot
- Ginger
- Spring Onions
Seasonings For Filling:
- Oyster Sauce
- Salt
- Chicken Stock Granules
- Ground White Pepper
- Shaoxing Wine
- Light Soy Sauce
- Cornstarch
For the Savoury Sauce:
- Water or stock
- Light soy sauce
- Dark soy sauce
- Salt
- Sugar
- Chicken stock granules
- Ground white pepper
- Cornstarch slurry
- Cooking oil
Overview: How to Make Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu Puffs
Part 1: Prepare Ingredients
- Soak the glutinous rice for at least 1 hour until softened.
- Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms until soft, then dice finely.
- Hand-chop pork belly or pork shoulder, keeping some texture in the meat.
- Toast the dried shrimp over low heat until fragrant, then chop finely.
- Finely chop the ginger, carrot and spring onions.
Part 2: Prepare Stuffed Tofu Puff Filling
- Combine the pork with ginger, spring onions, dried shrimp, carrot and shiitake mushrooms. Add the seasonings and mix in one direction until the filling becomes slightly sticky and cohesive.
- Add the soaked glutinous rice last and mix until evenly distributed.
Part 3: Make Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu Puffs
- Cut a small opening in each tofu puff and fill generously with the pork mixture.
- Steam for about 20 minutes, or until the filling is completely cooked.
- Prepare the savoury sauce, thicken lightly with cornstarch slurry, then spoon it over the steamed tofu puffs.
- Garnish with chopped spring onions and serve hot.
How to Serve Hakka Stuffed Tofu Puffs
These Hakka Stuffed Tofu Puffs are best served hot, generously coated with the savoury sauce and garnished with chopped spring onions. The sauce soaks into the tofu puffs beautifully, making them even more flavourful and satisfying.
Enjoy them on their own as an appetiser, or serve with steamed rice and a simple vegetable dish for a comforting home-style meal. They also make a delicious addition to a larger Hakka or Chinese family-style spread.
Practical Tips for the Best Hakka Stuffed Tofu Puffs
1. Choose good-quality tofu puffs
Look for fresh tofu puffs with an intact golden exterior and a light, airy centre. Their hollow interiors make them easy to stuff and allow them to absorb plenty of savoury sauce.
2. Make only a small opening
Use scissors to cut a small slit and gently press the inside to create room for the filling. Avoid cutting too deeply or tearing the tofu puff. Fill generously, but don’t press so hard that the tofu breaks.
3. Hand-chop the pork for better texture
Pork shoulder or pork belly works particularly well because some fat helps keep the filling juicy. Hand-chopping rather than processing the pork very finely also gives the cooked filling a more satisfying texture.
4. Prepare the dried ingredients properly
Soak the glutinous rice until softened and the dried shiitake mushrooms until completely rehydrated. Toast the dried shrimp gently over low heat before chopping to intensify its aroma and umami flavour.
5. Chop the filling ingredients finely
Finely chopping the mushrooms, dried shrimp, carrot, ginger and spring onions allows them to distribute evenly throughout the pork and makes the tofu puffs easier to stuff.
6. Mix the pork in one direction
Stir the seasoned pork in one direction until it becomes cohesive and slightly sticky. This helps create a springy filling that holds together well. Stop once you’ve reached this texture to avoid making the meat too firm.
7. Add the glutinous rice last
Mix the pork and seasonings first. Once the filling has developed the desired sticky texture, gently mix in the soaked glutinous rice so the grains retain their texture.
8. Start with a hot steamer
Bring the steamer water to a boil before adding the tofu puffs. Steam for about 20 minutes or until the pork is fully cooked. Avoid unnecessarily prolonged steaming, which can make the filling firmer.
9. Don’t skip the finishing sauce
Tofu puffs absorb liquid exceptionally well. Pour the warm savoury sauce generously over the steamed tofu puffs so they soak up plenty of flavour. A little cooking oil added to the finished sauce gives it an attractive glossy finish.
Here Are Some Other Recipes You May Like
- Steamed Minced Pork With Salted Fish 咸鱼蒸肉饼
- Chinese Braised Abalone with Sea Cucumber and Fish Maw 红烧鲍鱼海参花胶煲
- Beancurd In Thick Soup (Tofu Kan)豆腐羹
- Stir Fry Chinese Lettuce With Fermented Beancurd 油麦炒腐乳
- Crispy Stuffed Tofu Puffs 香脆炸酿豆腐卜
Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu Puffs 客家酿豆腐卜
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Ingredients
Main Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp glutinous rice, soaked for at least 1 hour
- 14 fried tofu puffs, or firm tofu
- 4 mushrooms, soaked, dice thinly
- 250 gram minced meat
- 1 tbsp dried shrimp, dry fry and minced
- ½ carrot, skinned and minced finely
- 30 gram ginger, skinned and minced finely
- 4 stalks spring onion, diced
Seasonings for the minced meat:
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp chicken stock granules
- ½ tsp ground white pepper
- 1 tbsp shaoxing wine
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
- 1 tsp cornstarch
Braising Sauce for the Tofu Puffs:
- 1 cup water
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp chicken stock granules
- ¼ tsp sugar
- ¼ tsp ground white pepper
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
- ¼ tsp dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp cornstarch solution
- 1 tsp cooking oil
Have ready all ingredients needed to make the stuffed tofu puffs.
Place 2 tbsp glutinous rice in a bowl. Add enough water and soak for at least 1 hour till soft. The soaked glutinous rice is ready when you can easily break its grain with the finger.
Soak dried shiitake mushrooms in hot water till soft.
Cut the soaked shiitake mushrooms in half lengthwise. Then cut into thin strips and diced as small as possible.
Prepare some fresh pork belly or pork shoulder and minced using a knife, preferably by hand as hand chopped meat will have a slightly grainy texture. Do not chop it too finely. Then set aside in a big bowl.
Heat up a dry wok. Then briefly toast cleaned dried shrimp over lowest heat till dry and fragrant. Stir occasionally with spatula to prevent the dried shrimp from burning. Then chop finely the toasted dried shrimp with knife and set aside.
Lastly chop finely ginger, carrot and spring onions and set aside.
In the bowl of minced meat, add in the chopped ginger, chopped spring onions, chopped fried dried shrimp and diced carrot as well as the diced dried shiitake mushrooms.
Then add oyster sauce, salt, chicken stock granules, a dash of ground white pepper, a splash of cooking wine to remove any fishy smell and to enhance the aroma. Lastly add light soy sauce and cornstarch or potato starch. Adding cornstarch increase the stickiness of the minced meat.
Then stir the meat to mix the seasonings evenly. Then stir it quickly in one direction for a short while to fully mixed the minced meat. Continue to stir until the mince meat is a little sticky. Next, repeatedly pound and knead the mince meat until it becomes a sticky well blended paste. This will make the meat firmer, more chewy and delicious.
Then add the soaked glutinous rice. Mix thoroughly the glutinous rice into the minced meat. Once it is well mixed, we are ready to make the stuffed beancurd.
Have ready some fresh tofu puffs. Use a pair of scissors to cut a small opening on the tofu puff. Next, press the inside with the finger. Then stuff the meat mixture firmly into the tofu until it's completely stuffed and slightly rounded on top.
Continue to cut small openings on the surface of the tofu puffs and stuff with the minced meat completely.
Prepare to steam the stuffed tofu puffs. Bring water to a boil in a steamer. Put in the stuffed beancurd, cover and steam for about 20 minutes till cooked. Set aside while we make the braising sauce.
Prepare the ingredients to make the braising sauce.
Add some water and bring to a boil. Add in all seasonings and stir to mix well.
Stir with a spoon and then thicken the braising sauce with cornstarch slurry. Lastly add a little cooking oil for a glossy finish.
Pour the prepared braising sauce evenly over the steamed stuffed tofu puffs. Garnish with chopped spring onions and served immediately.
Serve hot with hot chinese tea and enjoy!
Instructions
Prepare Ingredients:
Prepare Stuffed Tofu Puffs Filling:
Make Hakka Style Stuffed Tofu Puffs:
Enjoy!
Recipe Video
Notes
- For beginners, firm tofu and tofu puffs are the easiest choice to make this dish.
- Different tofu gives different texture. Firm tofu is the easiest to stuff and holds shape well. Tofu puffs readily absorb the savoury sauce, allowing the flavour to reach both the outside and the airy centre.
- Make only a small slit on the tofu puffs. Avoid tearing the tofu puff’s skin.
- Keep the tofu puffs in the freezer if you’re not using them. When you want to make the stuffed tofu puffs, remove them from the freezer to let them return to room temperature before using them to stuff the filling.
- Hand minced the meat, instead of processed with machine. This will create a better texture for the meat.
NUTRITION
Frequently Asked Questions about This Recipe
Yes. You can prepare the filling and stuff the tofu puffs ahead of time, then keep them covered in the refrigerator until ready to cook. Steam them closer to serving for the best texture.
Yes. Unused tofu puffs can be stored in the freezer. Thaw and bring them back to room temperature before stuffing so they become soft and easier to handle without tearing.
Yes. Hand-chopped meat gives the filling a more textured bite, but store-bought minced meat works well too. Choose minced meat with some fat rather than extra-lean mince to keep the filling juicy.
Yes. Minced chicken is a good substitute, especially chicken thigh as it stays moist after steaming. The flavour and texture will be slightly different from the traditional pork version.
The meat may be too lean, overmixed or overcooked. Use pork with some fat and mix the filling only until it becomes cohesive and slightly sticky. Avoid steaming for longer than necessary.
Yes. The glutinous rice adds a gentle chewy texture to the filling, but you can omit it if preferred. The filling will be more meat-forward without it.
Firm tofu can also be used for Hakka-style stuffed tofu, although the preparation and finished texture will be different. Tofu puffs are particularly suitable for this recipe because their airy centres hold plenty of filling and readily absorb the savoury sauce.
Steam for about 20 minutes, or until the pork filling is completely cooked through. Larger or more generously stuffed tofu puffs may require slightly longer.
