Quick, flavourful, and packed with umami—this classic Chinese stir-fry dish, Stir Fry Chinese Lettuce with Fermented Beancurd brings together tender Yau Mak and creamy fermented beancurd for a delicious side dish that takes just minutes to make.
Watch How To Make Stir Fry Chinese Lettuce with Fermented Beancurd 油麦炒腐乳 – Recipe Video
🌿 Stir Fry Chinese Lettuce with Fermented Beancurd (Yau Mak)
Stir Fry Chinese Lettuce with Fermented Beancurd (油麦炒腐乳) is a quick and incredibly flavourful Chinese vegetable dish that’s easy to prepare at home. Commonly found in Chinese restaurants, this stir-fry highlights Yau Mak (Chinese lettuce), a variety of Romaine, cooked with garlic, oyster sauce, and fermented beancurd for a unique umami depth.
The star ingredient here is the fermented beancurd, which brings a creamy, salty, and mildly cheesy flavour that pairs perfectly with the crisp texture of stir-fried lettuce. It’s a dish that surprises first-time tasters and keeps them coming back for more. The taste and flavour of the fermented bean paste matched so perfectly with the Chinese lettuce. The key to getting this dish right? The trick is using a really really hot wok and quick cooking—just stir fry 2 to 3 minutes on high heat to keep the lettuce fresh and crisp.
🥬 What is Chinese Lettuce (Yau Mak)?
Chinese Lettuce (油麦菜), known as Yau Mak in Cantonese or You Mai Cai in Mandarin. This vegetable is a leafy green with crunchy stems and mildly flavoured leaves, with more texture than flavour. This allows Chinese Lettuce to be a very versatile culinary green and multipurpose ingredient.
Yau Mak with its crunchiness, makes it perfect to stir fry. Yau Mak is part of the lettuce family and is very similar to Romaine Lettuce. In fact, you can also use romaine lettuce as a substitute for this dish, if Yau Mak is not available. However, romaine lettuce are commonly eaten raw but Yau Mak will only taste good on cooking. It has a more velvety texture and becomes silky and tender once cooked.
🧂 What is Fermented Beancurd?
Fermented Beancurd (腐乳), otherwise called fermented tofu, white beancurd cheese, cheese tofu or preserved tofu is a Chinese condiment consisting of a form of processed preserved tofu used in Asian cuisine. The ingredients typically are soybeans, salt, rice wine and sesame oil. In mainland China fermented beancurd is often freshly sold. In overseas Chinese communities living in Southeast Asia, commercially packaged versions are often available in jars, containing small square blocks 2-to-4 cm of fermented beancurd soaked in richly seasoned brine of selected flavouring.
Fermented Beancurd has a bold, salty flavour with a creamy texture that melts beautifully into stir-fries and sauces. Just one or two cubes mashed into a sauce can completely elevate a simple dish like this.
🛒 Ingredients You Need To Cook The Dish
- Chinese Lettuce (Yau Mak)
- Garlic (sliced thinly)
- Red Chili (cut into strips)
- Goji Berries (soak till soft)
- Fermented Beancurd (mashed)
- Oyster Sauce (Seasoning)
- Sugar (Seasoning)
- Light Soy Sauce (Seasoning)
🧑🍳 Overview On How To Cook The Dish
Prepare Ingredients:
- Wash and rinse Yau Mak. Drain to remove excess water.
- Peel and slice garlic, cut red chilli into long strips
- Soak goji berries in water till soft
- Mix mashed fermented beancurd with seasonings
Stir Fry Yau Mak With Fermented Beancurd:
- Heat up oil. Saute sliced garlic till fragrant.
- Add red chilli strips and mixed fermented beancurd paste and stir to mix well.
- Add Yau Mak and stir fry on high heat quickly making sure the Yau Mak is well coated with fermented beancurd paste.
- Dish up and serve.
How to Serve Stir Fry Chinese Lettuce With Fermented Beancurd
This dish is best served immediately, hot off the wok with a bowl of steamed rice. Do not reheat, as the lettuce will lose its signature crispness and become soggy.
💡 Pro Tips for Perfect Stir-Fry
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Use fresh garlic: It adds a deeper, more aromatic flavour to the dish. Make sure the garlic do not over brown when sautéing.
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Neutral oil is best: Grapeseed or sunflower oil won’t overpower the other ingredients.
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High heat is crucial: A hot wok seals in the crunch and prevents sogginess. Use high heat to stir fry the Chinese lettuce quickly to ensure the lettuce stay crisps after cooking. So be sure the wok is really hot when cooking.
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Don’t overcook: The whole process of cooking takes only 2 to 3 minutes on high heat. The leaves should turn bright green when just cooked. If over cook, it will lose its crunchiness, its bright green colour and plump appearance.
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for a fast and flavorful veggie side dish, Stir Fry Chinese Lettuce with Fermented Beancurd is a great option. It’s bold yet simple, with ingredients that come together in harmony in just minutes. Once you try this dish, it might just become a regular on your table!
Stir Fry Lettuce With Fermented Beancurd 油麦炒腐乳
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Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 500 grams chinese lettuce, Yau Mak, baby romaine lettuce
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 5 pip garlic, chopped
- 2 pieces fermented beancurd, mashed
- 1 red chilli, deseed and cut into long strips
- 1 tbsp goji berries, soaked till soft
Seasonings:
- 1 tsp oyster sauce
- ½ tsp sugar
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
Rinse Chinese Lettuce:
- 1 tsp salt
Have ready all ingredients to cook the dish.
Have ready the seasonings.
First wash the lettuce by rinsing the lettuce leaves in cool running water. Wash a few leaves at a time. Then drain to remove excess water in a colander.
Then thinly sliced peeled garlic, soak goji berries and drained and cut seeded red chilli into long stripes. Set aside for later use.
Lastly, add seasonings into fermented beancurd and crush to mix into a paste for easier use.
First heat up oil. Saute sliced garlic till fragrant. Then add in red chilli strips and fermented beancurd paste. Stir to mix well.
Add in the lettuce and stir fry on high heat till just cooked and the fermented beancurd paste is evenly mixed into the lettuce leaves. The whole process of cooking takes only about 3 minutes. Next add in the soaked goji berries and stir to mix well. And we are done!
Dish up and serve hot with steaming cooked rice.
Instructions
Prepare Ingredients:
Stir Fry Lettuce With Fermented Beancurd:
Enjoy!
Recipe Video
Notes
- Use fresh garlic to stir fry the Chinese lettuce. Fresh garlic will give the dish a more fragrant flavour. Make sure the garlic do not over brown when sautéing.
- Use a neutral oil (grapeseed or sunflower seed oil) to sauté the garlic and red chilli.
- Use high heat to stir fry the Chinese lettuce quickly to ensure the lettuce stay crisps after cooking. So be sure the wok is really hot when cooking.
- Do not over stir fry the lettuce. The whole process of cooking takes only about2 to 3 minutes. The leaves should turn bright green when just cooked. If over cook, it will lose its crunchiness and bright green colour and plum appearance.
