Chinese

Bean curd is another name for tofu, and Szechuan (or Sichuan) style means it’s stir-fried in a spicy, savory sauce with Szechuan peppercorns, which have a tingly, numbing heat. Our Szechuan Style Tofu involves cooking tofu with mushrooms, cabbage, carrots and red bell pepper in that classic sauce.

Good vegetarian choices in restaurants include vegetable fried rice, ma po tofu made without pork, broccoli with garlic sauce, moo shu vegetables, sautéed string beans and vegetable spring rolls. When you are out, ask about oyster sauce, fish sauce and chicken broth, which often show up in sauces in Chinese restaurants. Making Chinese dishes at home ensures you can skip all three: try our Ma Po Tofu, Garlic String Beans or Broccoli with Garlic Sauce, which are all inspired by classic Chinese restaurant dishes.

Coat cubes of firm tofu in cornstarch and cook them until crispy, then toss them in a sauce of rice vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, mirin and a little tomato paste thickened with cornstarch. For serving, you can serve it over rice with broccoli to soak up the sauce. Check out the full recipe for our Crispy Sweet & Sour Tofu.

The secret to making homemade vegetable fried rice is to use cold, cooked rice. Day-old rice is drier, so it fries up in separate grains instead of turning mushy. To make the fried rice, stir-fry onion, peppers, carrots and garlic first, then add the rice and soy sauce and cook, while stirring, over high heat. Consider trying our Veggie Fried Rice or the protein-packed Quinoa Veggie Fried Rice for full instructions on how to make fried rice at home.

Traditional ma po tofu is made with ground pork, so it isn’t vegetarian but you can easily make a vegetarian version and swap the pork for mushrooms. Our Ma Po Tofu uses crispy shiitake mushrooms and a miso sriracha sauce for the same rich, savory flavor.