Its been a while since I cooked a savory dish this past few weeks. Maybe you’re asking why? Well It just so happened that I always woke up late that by the time I woke up, my dad already prepared lunch for us. Cooking another dish would be too much for a family of five. So, what’s best too cook when main dish is done, dessert. So I’ve been cooking sweets this past few weeks. Speaking of which, probably next week, I’ll have my own special sweet project to deal with so I’ve got to be ready for my ingredients and other supplies.
Going back, for this week, I prepared a simple vegetable recipe that is so common in the Philippines, specially in the local carenderia. This is a great side dish with fried fish or pork barbecues. Its what we called Ginisang Togue or bean sprout. To make the dish extra special, instead if simply mixing the tofu, I sliced it thinly and deep fried it for a crunchier bite. The usually ginisang togue or sauteed bean sprout is served as is, readily seasoned with oyster sauce or simply some nice salt and pepper. For this recipe, I lightly seasoned the vegetables with salt and pepper, as I want the natural sweetness and flavor of the vegetable to stand out. Of course, you might think that this is a little bit bland, but no worry as the peanut butter sauce will be a great compliment to eat with this dish.
So how was it? The sauteed vegetable itself is lightly seasoned like what I’ve said a while ago, however, you will distinctly taste the flavor of the vegetable. I know some who don’t like vegetables because they’re bland, but if you are going to savor every bite and chew of the vegetables, you’ll taste their inherently sweet refreshing flavor. This recipe is so simple that it took me about 15 minutes to prepare the ingredients, 10 minutes to cook the vegetables and another 10 minutes to cook the peanut sauce.
Ingredients
Sauteed Vegetables
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
5 cloves Garlic, grated
1 piece Onion, finely chopped
1 large Carrot, cut in to strips
350 grams Bean Sprout, Togue
100 grams Shitake Mushrooms, cut in to strips
1 small bunch Chinese Cabbage, shredded
2 small cubes Firm Tofu, sliced thinly
Oil for deep frying
Salt and Pepper to taste
Peanut Sauce
3 cups Water
4 Tablespoons Light Soy Sauce
3 Tablespoons Oyster Sauce
5 Tablespoons Peanut Butter, I used the creamy crunchy type
3 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
2 cloves Garlic, grated
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
4 Tablespoons Water
Procedure
Heat olive oil in a large pan. Saute garlic and onion. Add carrots and continue sauteing until half cook. Add bean sprout and shitake mushrooms and saute for another 3 minutes or until the bean sprout is already done. Add Chinese cabbage and saute for another 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.
Heat the oil for deep frying and deep fry the thinly sliced tofu until golden brown and crispy. Add to the sauteed vegetables.
Mix ingredients for the peanut sauce except for the cornstarch and water. Bring everything to a bowl with continuous mixing to melt the peanut butter. Simmer for 5 minutes. Combine cornstarch and water. Slowly add to the peanut sauce until desired consistency is achieved. Be careful in adding the cornstarch solution as you don’t want a peanut butter paste.
