Tofu Balls

Soya Bean Curd Balls

Changyi Zhen

This recipe comes from a chef in Sichuan province in China, where we had gone to see the elusive pandas in their natural habitat. We failed miserably in our attempt, in spite of climbing and trekking in wet bamboo forests for days on end. It was very cold and muddy. Pandas were very secretive, probably sitting quietly only few yards away from us, because we saw frequent evidence of freshly eaten bamboo shoots and their fresh, still steaming ?poo?!! It got the scientists in our group very excited, trying to work out the age of the panda from the size of their poo, I tell you!

Everyday, when we returned from our exhausting treks, we were served excellent food, prepared by the local chefs, mostly made from the local produce. They even showed us the long and laborious process of making tofu, which I have to say, is not something I will recommend you try at home. I managed to get a couple of recipes, though they did not speak and English and we did not know any Chinese. The translators did not always know how to explain. Occasionally, we went into their kitchen, which was very messy, cold and wet, and I managed to write down a few recipes as they were cooking them. Tofu balls are easy to make and very good when served with chilli sauce. Also see Tofu (Bean Curd) in Chilli oil -Mamta