Buddhist Vegetable Noodles Recipes

BUDDHA'S DELIGHT (VEGETARIAN LO HAN JAI)

Steps:

• Heat your wok over medium-high heat, and add the oil and ginger. Let the ginger caramelize for about 30 seconds without letting it burn. Add the red fermented bean curd and break it up with your spatula. Add the garlic, the white portions of the leeks (reserve to green portion for later), mushrooms, wood ears, and lily flowers. Stir fry for 1 minute. Add the Shaoxing wine and stir fry for another minute.
• Next, add the napa cabbage, fried tofu, and bean threads, and crank up the heat as high as it will go. Stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the remaining green portion of the leeks, sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar and water or vegetable stock. Stir everything together, cover the wok, and reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Uncover the wok and turn the heat back up to high. Add the mung bean noodles, which should soak up most of the liquid. Keep stirring until most of the liquid has evaporated. Transfer to a large bowl and serve with steamed rice!

BUDDHA'S DELIGHT (JAI, CHINESE VEGETARIAN STEW)

Steps:

• Prepare the dried lily flowers, shiitake mushrooms and wood ear mushrooms: Place each ingredient in a separate medium-sized bowl and pour boiling water on top to cover by at least 1" (2.5 cm). Press the ingredients down to submerge into the water. Rehydrate for 20 minutes, until they turn soft throughout.
• After the lily flowers turn soft, remove the tough ends if needed (*Footnote 1). If the lily flowers are very long, cut them in half lengthwise. Drain and set aside. Measure out 3/4 cup of the soaking water for later use.
• For the shiitake mushrooms, gently squeeze the water from the mushrooms, then slice into halves. Measure out 1/4 cup of the soaking water and pour into the same bowl with the lily flower rehydrating water.
• For the wood ear, mushrooms, once rehydrated, cut into small bite-sized pieces.
• Place the vermicelli noodles in a medium-sized bowl and add boiling water to cover. Let sit for 3 to 5 minutes (or according to the package instructions), until the noodles turn al-dente. Drain and set aside.
• Combine the sauce ingredients in a medium-sized bowl, stir to mix well and set aside.
• Mix the ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet (at least 13 inches) or a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. When oil turns hot but not smoking hot, add ginger and green onion. Stir a few times until fragrant.
• Add the carrot, lily flowers, and dried shiitake mushrooms. Stir and cook for 1 minute.
• Add bamboo shoots and wood ear mushrooms. Stir and cook for 1 minute.
• Add fried tofu and pour in the sauce. Add the napa cabbage and bok choy. Cover and cook over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked through. Uncover and stir in between, to mix the vegetables with the sauce.
• Add bean thread noodles and let them soak in the liquid. Stir and cook for another 30 seconds. Stir the cornstarch slurry again to dissolve completely and pour into the pan. Stir until the sauce thickens. Transfer everything to a large platter. Serve hot as a main dish.

BUDDHA'S DELIGHT

Steps:

• Soak mushrooms in 5 cups boiling-hot water in a bowl, keeping them submerged with a small plate and turning mushrooms over occasionally, until softened and cool enough to handle, about 30 minutes. Squeeze excess liquid from caps back into bowl and reserve liquid, then cut out and discard stems from mushrooms. Cut caps into 1-inch wedges.
• While mushrooms soak, carefully break bean curd skins in half crosswise, then halve each portion crosswise again. Transfer to a bowl, then add enough boiling-hot water to cover and soak, turning occasionally, until softened, about 30 minutes.
• If using fresh bamboo, trim bottoms of shoots, then halve shoots lengthwise with a sharp heavy knife. Pull off and discard leaves from shoots, then remove any blemishes with a sharp paring knife (don't worry about natural dotted pattern along base of shoots).
• Cover fresh or frozen bamboo with cold water by 1 inch in a 2-quart saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil 2 minutes, then drain in a colander and rinse under cold water. Repeat boiling and rinsing, then arrange bamboo halves, cut sides down, on a cutting board and cut bamboo lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices.
• Soak noodles in cold water to cover until softened, about 5 minutes, then drain in colander and transfer to a bowl.
• Drain bean curd skins in colander. When cool enough to handle, squeeze dry and cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces.
• Halve tofu lengthwise, then cut each half crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices.
• Heat oil in a 5- to 6-quart wide heavy pot over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. Add ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, 30 seconds. Add mushrooms, bean curd skins, bamboo, and ginkgo nuts and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Stir in oyster sauce, soy sauce, rice wine, and sugar and simmer 1 minute. Add reserved mushroom-soaking liquid and bring to a boil. Gently stir in tofu and soybean sprouts, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, 15 minutes. Gently stir in noodles and simmer, covered, 5 minutes. Add romaine hearts (pot will be full) and turn to coat, then simmer, covered, until romaine is tender, about 5 minutes.

BUDDHA'S DELIGHT (LO HAN JAI 罗汉斋)

Steps:

• Tie a knot for each dried lily flowers, for better presentation.
• Soak the dry ingredients until they turn soft and fully hydrated.
• Cut the bean curd sheet into smaller pieces. Deep-fried briefly (about 15-20 seconds), remove and drain.
• Cut the carrots and bamboo shoots into thin slices.
• Cut the soaked wood ear fungus into the size similar to the carrots.
• Remove the stem of the Shiitake mushrooms. Cut into two for the smaller one, and slice into three or four for the bigger one.
• Keep the water after soaking the mushrooms. Use it as part of the Braised liquid since it is full of flavor.
• Cut the cabbage into large pieces.
• Ladle two tablespoons of vegetable oil into the wok. Stir fry the cabbage until it starts to turn soft.
• Add the Shiitake mushroom, lily flowers, wood ear fungus, black moss, carrots, the fermented bean curd, sugar, the mushroom water, and some additional water. Braise for two minutes.
• Break the deep-fried bean curd into smaller pieces. Lay on top of the other ingredients.
• Add the mung bean vermicelli on top of the bean curd pieces. Braise with the lid on for five minutes or until the bean curd pieces are soft. Add some water if necessary.
• Add the bamboo shoots, button mushrooms, and baby sweet corns.
• Braise until the vegetables are soft, and the sauce thickens. Serve.

BUDDHIST VEGETABLE NOODLES

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon peanut oil in a preheated wok and stir-fry onion until translucent. Toss in garlic, ginger, and mushrooms and stir-fry for another minute. Add oyster sauce and 2 tablespoons soy sauce and cook for another 30 seconds. Remove wok contents to a bowl and set aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons peanut oil in the hot wok and stir-fry cabbage, bell peppers, bamboo shoots, and carrot for 3 minutes. Toss in bean sprouts, sugar, ¼ cup reserved mushroom water, salt, and pepper and cook for 1 minute. Add onion and mushroom mixture, rice wine, and sesame oil and stir to combine well.
• Cook noodles in plenty of water at a rolling boil for about a minute. Drain thoroughly, rinse under cold running water, and drain again. Toss noodles with remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce and remaining 1 teaspoon peanut oil.
• To serve, place noodles on a large warmed serving platter, spoon vegetable mixture on top, and mix lightly. Garnish with green onions sprinkled over the top.