Okay, I’ll admit right away that this isn’t the prettiest dish. The first time I saw it at our neighborhood Taiwanese restaurant I thought “what the heck!” But boy, oh boy, once we started eating this Mashed Tofu and Century Egg 涼拌皮蛋豆腐, it was a baboom! Flavor texture explosion! The most favorite tofu dish ever, you have to order it every time and everyone takes turns scraping the bottom of the glass jar.
Century eggs 皮蛋 are duck eggs preserved using clay, ash, quicklime and rice husk. Storage turns the egg white a beautiful translucent black-brown color and the yolk a dark gray-green. The taste becomes pungent and complex, the only addiction. A bit like that of some spicy cheeses.
At wet markets, century eggs are sold with black ash still covering them but marked with radiating white lines. So graphic! In this case you will have to scrape off the ash before peeling the egg shell. If you buy from supermarkets, the ash is often already washed away, leaving the grey-green eggshell clean, as shown in the photo above. These eggs just need to be peeled.
Century egg yolks are of two types. One is harder and can be cut cleanly. This is useful for dishes where the yolks need to withstand frying or boiling. The other is softer and cannot be cut cleanly. This softer one is known as 糖心皮蛋, translated as ‘sugar heart century egg’ and is used to eat on its own as a starter/side dish or in dishes where the yolks may be dissolved into the dish. This 糖心皮蛋 is what is needed for the success of this dish.
In the photo above we show sliced century eggs. The delicious translucent brown whites are cut small. The soft grey-green yolk is also sliced but you can see the stickiness of the result. It doesn’t matter, because the yolks will dissolve into the tofu later during mixing.
Once the water has cooled, remove the tofu and let it rest on the towels to absorb excess water.
For an accent we add the citrus and fresh taste of coriander in contrast with the spiciness of the century egg. Just a little, broken up.
We mix the coriander and century egg together first, using our spoon to crush the egg even more. See how the cilantro creates beautiful green spots everywhere?
Add the silken tofu and begin mashing and mixing. This way we get the overall creamy consistency. The egg yolk should dissolve into the tofu as you mash it.
When a little of everything mixes with a little of everything else it’s time to season. Add soy sauce, sesame oil and salt until every bite is a delight. All the flavors will infuse into the tofu and century egg, making every bite as perfect as possible. Then it’s time to relax and let the flavors develop.
Oh, it’s done and it’s so delicious! When it’s ready for dinner, take it out of the fridge and put a serving spoon in it. Spoon after spoonful of super delicious, Mashed Tofu and Century Egg will be a big hit at the dinner table, I promise!
Mashed tofu and century egg
Ingredients:
Directions:
Carefully remove the tofu into the bowl. Separately, boil enough water to cover the tofu. Once the water has boiled, remove it from the heat and pour it into the bowl at the sides (i.e. not on top of the tofu) until the water covers the tofu. Let sit for 10 minutes or until the water is cool enough to handle.
Remove the tofu and place on a clean sheet of kitchen paper to drain.
Scrape the ash from the century eggs, if any. Flushing. Crack and peel off eggshells. Cut the eggs into small pieces, especially the egg whites.
Rinse and chop the coriander.
Stir in the diced century egg and coriander. Add the tofu and stir until completely combined.
Add sesame oil, soy sauce and sugar. Mix and then taste. Then adjust by adding salt to taste.
Pour everything into the serving bowl, cover and leave to cool for at least 2 hours. Serve cold with a serving spoon. Enjoy!
Egg Delights at The Hong Kong Cookery:
