Yong Tau Foo

Serves 2

This is my own version of yong tau foo. I'm really not sure how other people make it but this is how I do it. Could you buy it ready made? Yes. Is that fun? No! It's just as fast to make it yourself and there's no strange chemicals in it that make it bouncy like the store bought fish balls/yong tau foo. It's not going to be as springy as the factory made fish balls but it sure is healthier!

I've used just 4 green chilies and 2 square pieces of firm tofu here but you can go crazy and use anything you like to stuff the fish paste in! Mushrooms, capsicum, eggplant, tomatoes.

As for the soup base, I used a mixture of fish bones and chicken feet with some garlic and onions. But you can use ANYTHING you want! Best is to boil a load of soya beans for about 2 - 3 hours, throw in a few ikan billis and dried shrimp, and that's really sweet enough. If you're pressed for time, just use a stock cube! Anything goes really.

For 2 people:

About 200g of white firm flesh fish, with skin in tact (bigger fish works best)
1 egg white
Cornflour
Salt
Finely ground white pepper
Chopped spring onions, chopped (optional)
Chopped red chilies, chopped (optional)

1) Using a teaspoon, scrape the meat from the fish. You'll realise that it turns into mush pretty easily.

2) Discard the skin and any bones.

3) Don't use all the egg white. About 1 teaspoon or less is good enough for 200g.

4) Add a pinch of salt, and finely ground white pepper and about 1/4 teaspoon of cornflour just to bind everything together. Add spring onions and chilies if desired.

5) Mix it all together until you get a sticky paste. You can also grab it and slap it on the mixing bowl a few times.

6) Stuff the paste into your vegetables or tofu. (If using chilies and capsicum you might want to discard the seeds).

7) If using firm tofu, cut each piece diagonally into two triangles. Make a slit into the cut but don't slit all the way through. Start stuffing. Be careful as it's quite delicate and you don't want to stuff too much.

8) Bring your stock to a boil and add in your ingredients. Boil for about 5 - 10 minutes or until your vegetables are cooked to your liking. Firm tofu is already cooked and really only needs 3 - 5 minutes.

9) Serve with cooked noodles of your choice, rice or just on its own!