Buddha’s Delight—or vegetarian lo han jai—recipe for Chinese New Year

Introduce the dish Buddha's Delight, traditionally made for Chinese New Year.

Discuss the significance of the dish as a cleansing meal after rich foods during celebrations.

Show F Choy, explaining it is a dried land moss that needs to be rehydrated before use.

Mention rehydrating ingredients a few hours or the night before cooking.

Show tofu skins, explaining they are dried and need rehydration as well.

Introduce lettuce stem (salus), describing its fresh green flavor and crunchy texture, as a substitute for water chestnut.

Start making the sauce by combining soy sauce, sweet soy sauce, corn starch, and mushroom stock water in a bowl.

Hydrate dried mushrooms for the mushroom stock water, suggesting to hydrate for at least an hour before cooking.

Heat a pan and add sesame oil to it, explaining its distinct flavor.

Finely chop ginger, garlic, and green onion (Asian trio) and add to the hot oil to infuse for about 10 seconds.

Add Napa cabbage and salus to the pan, seasoning with a little salt, and sauté.

Slice puff tofu and add to the pan, explaining they absorb flavors and need to be heated.

Cut Bean Thread noodles with scissors and add them to the pan, following the traditional method of using scissors instead of knives.

Add mushrooms and F Choy to the pan, tossing everything together.

Mix the sauce and pour it into the pan, allowing it to thicken with the ingredients.

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Dietary