Two recipes using ‘Chinese cheese’, or fermented bean curd – a funky addition to sweet and savoury dishes
- Bean curd that has been fermented in a rice wine brine is a far cry in both texture and flavour from fresh tofu
- Naam yu or fu yu add a mild funkiness to fried spare ribs and, more unusually, French toast with sugar
Anyone who doubts the versatility of bean curd needs only to look at fu yu and naam yu. The flavour and texture of these fermented bean curds are very different from the mild taste and sometimes jellylike texture of the fresh varieties, of which there are many. Fu yu (which is off-white) and naam yu (which is red) are made by soaking fresh tofu in rice wine brine for a denser and creamier texture.
Because they gain a mild, funky smell in the process, they are sometimes called “Chinese cheese”, although they don’t contain dairy products. Small squares of fu yu or naam yu can be served as a simple but nutritious accompaniment to rice. I like to use them in these dishes.
Fried spare ribs with fermented bean curd
I don’t know where this recipe comes from. I thought it was something my mother used to make, but while she says she made a similar marinade, she used it for chicken, which she steamed, instead of deep-frying.
Have the butcher cut the spare ribs across the bone into 3cm-4cm pieces.
My favourite coating for this is water chestnut flour, because it gives a crunchy texture, but you can use cornstarch or plain (all-purpose) flour.
As with many of the foods I fry, I double-fry these ribs. The first frying is to cook the meat; the second is to crisp up the crust. The first frying can be done up to several hours in advance, but do the second just before serving.
