Braised Beancurd with Filling

1) Cut beancurd into pieces of 2X1X3/8 inches.

Put minced pork in a small pot, add salt (1/4 teaspoon ), soya sauce (2 teaspoons), cooking wine (1 teaspoon), gourmet powder (1/4 teaspoon), minced scallion (1 teaspoon) and ginger (1 teaspoon) and cornflour (1.1/2 teaspoons). Break egg on it. Mix well into a filling.

2) Heat frying pan and pour in peanut oil. When the oil smokes, put in beancurd pieces one by one and fry until they are dark brown. Drain. Cut them open horizontally about three quarters of the way through.

3) Stuff minced filling into the cuts and, with a small knife, smooth the three sides where the filling shows.

4) Keep about 1.1/2 tablespoons of oil in the pan. Heat it and put in scallion (1 teaspoon) and ginger mince (1 teaspoon). Stir a little. Add soya sauce (1 teaspoon), boiling water (1 cup), salt (1/4 teaspoon), cooking wine (1 teaspoon) and gourmet powder (1/4 teaspoon). Put in stuffed beancurd pieces. Bring stock to a boil on high flame. Keep it boiling on low fire for another 15 minutes. Dilute cornflour (1.1/2 teaspoons) with a little water and thicken the sauce with it.

Notes:

(1) If this dish is to be served cold, it is not necessary to thicken the sauce. Simply serve after it has become cool.

(2) If it is preferred that the dish be very well cooked, add a little more water and prolong the simmering time.

(3) An alternative for the last step: Instead of minced scallion and ginger, 2 medium-sized stalks of scallion (cut in lengths and fried in oil) may be used to prepare the stock. The taste will be somewhat different and the dish will be called "Filled Beancurd with Scallion".