Buddha's Delight (Jai)

Happy New Year! But also we have to get ready for another New Year in a couple weeks. Lunar New Year is quickly sneaking up (January 22nd)! I’m not a big fan of the Gregorian New Year. After the magic of Christmas fades I tend to get deep in my feelings about the passing of time and fill up with more anxiety than I want. But Lunar New Year feels so different. It’s my favorite time of year! I love going grocery shopping and walking through Chinatown during this time because the buzz in the air is so amazing. Everyone is excited and maybe a little frantic because we are all trying to find the best cut of pork belly or the rounded pomelo.

Every year I share a Lunar New Year menu full of new recipes that bring lots of good fortune and prosperity to your table. I’m quite excited about this year’s collection! I’m kicking things off with Jai or often called Buddha’s Delight. This is the most requested recipe when I did an open call for LNY food on Instagram a month ago. Jai is a vegetarian dish made popular by Buddhist monks and is typically eaten on New Year’s Day. I didn’t grow up necessarily eating this for LNY but we did follow the tradition of enjoying a pretty meat heavy feast on the eve and then eating vegetarian on new years day. My family does make two separate dishes that reminded me a lot of Jai though! Fun See is a stir-fried vermicelli dish that is always on every family dinner table and my mom makes this amazing savory braised beef and bean curd dish.

I took the flavors and techniques form both of these loved dishes to make my own version of Jai. Mine consists mainly of dried shiitake mushrooms, bean curd, cabbage, some snap peas for color, and bean thread noodles. I prefer dried shiitake mushrooms because they have a concentrated earthy flavor and when you soak them in hot water, the reserved mushroom water is perfect for adding to the braise later. Dried bean curd is an ingredient that I adore and I’m determined to incorporate more of into my daily cooking. For a braise like this, my Mom taught me the trick of lightly frying the bean curd first (it also makes a tasty crunchy snack). It sort of blisters and puffs up like a chicharon and develops a texture that’s better for soaking up the flavors of the braise. All the vegetables and aromatics cook together like a regular stir-fry, but then you add the noodles and the mushroom braising liquid, and let everything simmer. The noodles hydrate, the bean curd tenderizes, and all those flavors meld together.

If you don’t count waiting for the mushrooms to soak, this dish is so quick to make, which is ideal if you have a few other dishes to make for the big feast!

Buddha's Delight

Serves 4 to 6 as a side

65g (8 medium) dried shiitake mushrooms

1/4 cup canola oil

75g (3 to 4 strips) dried bean curd, broken into 2” pieces

2 inch ginger, thinly sliced

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

4 green onions, cut at a bias with whites and greens separated

300g (about 4 cups) green cabbage, roughly chopped

113g (1/4lb) snow or snap peas, trimmed

2 tbsp oyster sauce (or vegetarian oyster sauce)

1 tbsp broad bean paste

1/2 tsp coarse salt

1/2 tsp white pepper

1 tbsp sesame oil

76g (2 bundles) bean thread noodles

1. In a medium heat-proof bowl, soak mushrooms in hot (just boiled) water. Cover with a heavy bowl or plate and let the mushrooms hydrate until tender, 45 to 60 minutes. Remove the mushrooms, pressing out any excess moisture, and cut into 1/4” sliced (remove the stems if they are tough). Reserve the mushroom water and strain out any debris.

2. Heat oil in a large pan or wok over medium-high heat. Fry a few pieces of dried bean curd at a time until crispy and blistered on both sides (they will puff up slightly), a few seconds on each side. Transfer to a plate.

3. Add ginger, garlic, and the whites of the green onion into the pan. Stir-fry until fragrant and the aromatics are starting to brown, 3 minutes. Add cabbage and toss to combine. Continue to stir-fry the cabbage, tossing occasionally, until starting to soften and brown around the edges, 5 minutes. Add mushrooms, snow peas, fried bean curd, oyster sauce, broad bean paste, salt, white pepper, and sesame oil. Toss to combine. 

4. Make a little space in the center of your pan and add the bean thread noodles. Combine mushroom water with enough water to make 2 1/2 cups and pour into the pan. Bring to a simmer. Make sure the noodles and any larger pieces of bean curd are submerged in the water so they fully cook. Cover the pan with a lid and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Continue to simmer until nearly all of the liquid has cooked off and the noodles are bouncy and tender, for 8 to 10 minutes. If any larger pieces of bean curd are still a little tough, add a splash of water and cover again to cook for a few extra minutes. Remove the lid, add the greens of the green onion, and give everything a good toss. Continue to cook for another minute to cook off any excess moisture (doesn’t need to be completely dry, we want a little saucy action).

5. Allow the noodles to cool for a few moments and then serve!