Noodles and black bean sauce has always been one of my favourite Chinese dishes. I used to eat it on Shaftsbury Avenue when I was in my early twenties, in those Chinese restaurants that were permanently busy and where they would cram you in at tables next to complete strangers to eat your food (It was a good way of meeting new people). I’ve made this one using fried tofu and tender stem broccoli, in addition to red peppers and onions. Stir-fries are a good way of cooking vegetables while retaining their nutritional value. Cooking the sauce at the end helps finish off the veg (particularly the broccoli, which can be underdone when stir-frying alone).
If you enjoy the recipes here, please show your support for this blog by clicking on the ads to help keep the free content coming!
The tofu for this is deep-fried, so it is important to get it as dry as you can beforehand. If you don’t have a tofu press (and I don’t), the best way is to wrap the tofu in a towel and put some heavy weights on top for at least 10-15 minutes. The water will absorb into the towel, leaving you with a much drier tofu. To get it extra dry, you can always unwrap it and wrap it again in either a dry part of the towel, or with a fresh one. Remember to never fill your pan for deep frying more than half-full of oil, as it rises significantly when you put something in it to cook. If you have small children, always put the deep-frying pan at the back of the stove for cooking.
The only item in this recipe that is not gluten-free is the dark soy sauce. Switch for tamari if you need to.
ORDER YOUR COPY OF MY COOKBOOK
GOING VEGAN FROM AMAZON
AVAILABLE IN BOTH PAPERBACK AND KINDLE FORMAT
Fried Tofu with Rice Noodles and Black Bean Sauce
Ingredients
Easy to make gluten-free.
- 1 x400g pack of firm tofu fully drained using the method described above, and cut into large squares
- Enough vegetable oil for deep frying
- 1 can of black beans washed and drained
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 red peppers large diced
- 1 large onion large diced
- 100 g tender stem broccoli
- 2 tsp garlic puree
- 1 tsp ginger puree
For the Sauce:
- 250 ml hot vegetable stock
- 4 tbsp dark soy sauce
- ¼ – ½ tsp hot sauce depending on how hot you like it (it should be a background flavour)
- 30 ml cider vinegar
- 4 tbsp brown sugar
To Serve:
- 1 pack pre-cooked rice noodles
- 1 red chilli finely sliced to garnish
Instructions
- First heat the deep-frying oil so that it is hot enough to fry the tofu. You can test it by putting a piece in. It will bubble immediately when it is ready. Deep-fry the tofu for approximately 12 minutes, stirring from time to time to ensure even cooking. The tofu will be brown all over and crisp when it is done. Drain on kitchen paper and set aside.
- While the tofu is frying, wash and drain the black beans, so that they are quite dry by the time you come to cook them.
- Heat the sesame oil in a wok or large frying pan and fry the peppers and onions together for about 4-5 minutes. Add the broccoli and cook for 4 minutes more, stirring often.
- While this is cooking, make the sauce by putting all of the sauce ingredients into a jug or bowl and mixing together. Set aside until ready to use.
- Add the black beans to the other vegetables in the wok and cook for 3 more minutes, then add the garlic and ginger. Give it another 2 minutes and then pour over the sauce. It will begin to bubble and reduce immediately. Allow to reduce on a high heat for 3 minutes or so, then put the fried tofu into the dish and heat through. Finally, add the rice noodles and stir until completely mixed.
- Serve into bowls and top with the sliced chilli if desired.
WANT TO LEARN TO COOK AMAZING VEGAN FOOD?
SIGN UP TO MY MEMBERSHIP SITE RICHARD CHURCH’S VEGAN COOK SCHOOL
AND GET UNLIMITED ACCESS TO ONLINE VEGAN COOKING CLASSES
Check out my latest recipes
Rhubarb and Blueberry Jam
This is a great recipe if you have some leftover rhubarb in your garden, in addition to some fresh blueberries, available now in most supermarkets if you don’t grow them. It’s the kind of thing you can throw together late one evening, as it only requires the occasional stir. You can then leave it to…
Caramelised Red Onion Dip
This is the perfect time of year to be experimenting with cold and light food. Easy items that you can store in the fridge and eat over a few days as the mood takes you. Dips are great for outdoor eating. You can put a selection of homemade dips on the table on any occasion,…
Roasted Asparagus, Basil and Walnut Pesto Served with Baby Potatoes and Broad Beans
You can get asparagus imported all year round in most supermarkets, but British asparagus has its growth season between May and July, with early appearance often at the end of April. Now is the perfect time to make use to these green spears in your everyday cooking. My choice for this recipe was to roast…
Asparagus, Mushroom and Leek Pastries
April 23rd marks the start of asparagus season and we are now starting to see British asparagus appear on the shelves. Young asparagus is a thin and tender vegetable that is perfect for cooking a variety of dishes. It cooks quickly, so you must keep an eye on it. The more mature plant is thicker…
Vegan Meatballs in Tomato Sauce
What is it about a plate of plump vegan meatballs in a rich tomato sauce, nestled comfortably on a soft pillow of spaghetti that is so satisfying even before a single mouthful is taken? It is a dish where even the sight and smell of it has its own umami. It creates thrilling anticipation from…
Vegan Enchiladas
To veganise something like Enchiladas now is incredibly easy with the variety of ingredients available in most supermarkets. For this one I have used fresh vegan mince, along with mushrooms and onions for the chilli base. Don’t worry if you don’t like eating vegan mince, you can always substitute this chilli for my Sweet Potato,…
Spanish Lentils with Vegan Chorizo and Black Pudding
I first tried this dish about 25 years ago, when my Spanish girlfriend made it for me in a bedsit we shared in North London back in the mid-nineties. It was cooked on one of those old Baby Belling stoves that you would often see in bedsits back in those days (they might still have…
Vegan Fudge Cookies
We’ve been enjoying packets of vegan fudge in our house for quite a while now and a recent conversation with my wife got me thinking about how great it would be to have the fudge in a cookie, just like it was chocolate chip. This recipe is the product of that discussion: a very simple…
20
20
20
20