Tofu Stew with Root Vegetables

Many Vietnamese people will already know this dish if they are the Buddhists. This dish is regularly on the tables of Buddhist Temples every full moon celebration. For healthy living lifestyles, this dish must be in each family meal. All the root vegetables, such as daikon, carrot, kohlrabi, and bamboo shoots. because they add so many vitamins that are needed for the body to function well. I like to add the eggplant to this recipe to join in with this group of vegetables. The very light sauce cooked with coconut water will result in a sweeter taste for this recipe. I hope this recipe will make all the vegetarians happy and healthy.

Ingredients:

Root vegetables:*

Daikon, carrot, kohlrabi, and squash.

Other ingredients:

Fried tofu 12 oz.

Eggplant**

Long beans***

Cabbage***

Garlic-ginger paste

Chili flakes

Oil for stir-frying

Stew sauce ingredients:

12 oz. coconut water

1 tsp miso paste

1 tbs soy sauce

1 tsp salt

1 tsp mushroom seasoning

1 tbs honey

1 tsp blackstrap molasses

Directions:

Combine the stew sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Peel and cut the root vegetables into bite-size pieces (about 1 ½ inch cubes or your choice).

You can buy ready-fried tofu at an Asian supermarket; if not available, just use some oil and cut the tofu into cubes and deep-fry them until golden brown.

Cut eggplant into bite size pieces.

Cut cabbage into bite size pieces.

Cut long beans (about 2 inch lengths).

In a large pot, heat 1/4 cup oil. Stir in garlic-ginger paste and chili flakes (stir for 30 seconds or until fragrant). 

Stir in all the root vegetables. Cook vegetables for 3 minutes and add the stew sauce.

Cover and cook for 10 minutes or until all the root vegetables are halfway cooked; then add tofu, eggplant, and long beans. Adjust the seasoning at this point with salt.

 Add cabbage a few minutes before cooking is completed. The final result for this dish is that all the vegetables are cooked and tender, not mushy.

*All the root vegetables combined should be about 4 cups total.

**Use half of the eggplant.

***1 cup cabbage, and 1/2 cup long beans. Throw in a few mushrooms if you like. This is a free style recipe. Choose whatever vegetable and how many vegetables you desire into this dish.