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In Reply to: soya sticks posted by sharyn on July 30, 2008 at 2:20 pm:
Yes, they probably are yuba, and they can be very delicious! Here is some info from my books, and then some of my favorite recipes for using the sticks: YUBA OR BEANCURD SKIN (TOU-P'I, DOUFU-P'I OR DOUFU-I) as "bean milk sheets", "pressed tofu", and other confusing things) is a very concentrated soyfood. The dried version, available in Asian markets and some large supermarkets, must be soaked in warm water before using. SOAKING: Dried yuba HAS to be soaked before it's cooked, so don't skip that step. The sticks need to be soaked an hour or two, in warm water; the sheets about 10 minutes. I have never had sheets not get flexible in that time, but the sticks often have certain spots in them (usually where they were bent) that NEVER get flexible. If you are deep-frying them, it doesn't matter. If not, just cut those parts off and discard. It's possible that really old yuba (like really old beans) doesn't rehydrate well. Try to go to a store that has a decent turnover. The Chinese have used amazing ingenuity to create "mock meats" using yuba. In Chinese yuba shops you will find replicas of chickens, ducks, fish, hams, rolled meats, sausages links, etc., all made primarily from yuba. These dishes, with names such as Buddha's Chicken or Buddha's Duck, as served on cold plates at fine restaurants or family banquets. Often, these "mock meats" are made from a similar product called pai-yeh, or pressed beancurd sheets or wrappers, sometimes translated as "one hundred leaves" or "one hundred pages". These are used in the same ways as yuba, but are made by pressing firm soybean curds under very heavy weights for several hours, until the sheet of beancurd looks like a 6-12" square of canvas with a clot-like pattern imprinted on both sides. The sheets are flexible and very attractive, I think. They are, unfortunately, harder to find outside of urban centers with large Chinese populations. However, should you find it, feel free to substitute it for yuba. A thicker form of yuba is called Er-ju bean curd sheets. They are brown and come in stacks of 5 x 1 and 1/2" sheets tied together with string or wrapped in paper. They can be soaked and then cooked with soy sauce and seasonings to make a type of "ham" or "bacon". The three books I've found with the most info on yuba are; "The Book of Tofu" by William Shurtleff and Akiko Aoyagi and two books by Hawaiian Kathy Hoshijo: "Kathy Cooks Naturally" Her books aren't strictly vegan, but mostly, and she has lots of good recipes. Now, some recipes: This rich soy product makes a delicious stew to serve with mashed potatoes. 6 oz. package Chinese dried beancurd skin sticks (yuba) Soak the yuba sticks in a large bowl or pot of warm water for a couple of hours. Drain them and pat dry on clean tea towels. Cut them into 2" pieces. Toss them in a bowl with the Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a large nonstick or cast iron skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the yuba sticks with soy sauce and stir-fry until they begin to brown. Add the chopped carrot and celery and keep stir-frying until the vegetables begin to brown. Scrape this into a small roasting pan or a large casserole which can be used in the oven or on top of the stove (if you used a laarge enough cast iron skillet, you can just use this as the casserole). Pour the broth into the skillet and scrape up all the good "brown bits". Pour this into the casserole and add the remaining ingredients EXCEPT the peas and dissolved cornstarch. Cover the pan and bake for 1 hour, adding the peas during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Remove from the oven and place the casserole over a burner. Over medium-high heat, stir in the dissolved cornstarch and stir until the juices have thickened. Taste for salt and add plenty of freshly-ground black pepper. **************************** BRYANNA’S SPICY BRAISED YUBA (BEANCURD SKIN) Serves 6 as an appetizer From my book “Authentic Chinese Cuisine for the Contemporary Kitchen”. NOTE: THIS IS MEANT TO BE AN APPETIZER OR DIM SUM, NOT A MAIN DISH. This is a vegetarian version of a well-loved Chinese dim sum dish made from-- dare I say it?-- tripe. My mother suggested that yuba (beancurd skin) sticks, soaked and cut into pieces make a good substitute for tripe in the Mexican soup Menudo, and in some old-fashioned Italian dishes, so I tried it with this dish. It's delicious! 1 pckg. (6-8 oz.) dried beancurd skin (yuba) sticks Soak the yuba in a large bowl or pot of warm water for about 1 hour. Drain it and cut it into 1" pieces, discarding any parts that didn't soften. Heat a large wok or heavy skillet over high heat. When it's hot, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the green onions, garlic, black beans and ginger. Stir-fry briefly, then add the yuba and all of the seasonings EXCEPT the sesame oil. Cook over high heat, stirring from time to time, until most of the liquid is absorbed. Drizzle in the sesame oil and stir. Serve hot or at room temperature. BRYANNA’S CRISPY DELIGHT (FRIED YUBA/BEAN CURD SKIN) In Buddhist vegetarian Chinese restaurants there is often a delicious dish called "Sweet and Sour Crispy Delight", but nothing to tell you what the "crispy delight" is. I suspected that it was cubes of layered yuba (bean curd skin) deep-fried to a crunchy texture, but I'm still not sure how they get those layers to stick together! However, I have come up with my own easy, home version of "crispy delight". Soak yuba (bean curd skin) sticks in warm water for about 10 minutes. Cut the softened sticks into 1 or 2" lengths, discarding any parts that are hard and refuse to rehydrate. Fry a few pieces at a time in hot oil (see pps. about deep-frying) until they are crisp and golden. Drain on paper towels. These stay crisp when they cool and can be fried ahead of time. Use the "crispy delights" instead of pork or other vegetarian proteins in sweet and sour sauce or other dishes that call for fried chunks of meat. *********************************** YUBA UN-RIBS from "Kathy Cooks" by Kathy Hoshijo (serves 5-6): 8 oz. dried bean curd (yuba) sticks Soak the yuba sticks 4-6 hours, or overnight, in hot water. Drain and cut sticks into 4" lengths. Cut off any pieces that remain hard. Squeeze out excess water. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix together the yeast, peanut butter, miso and margarine to form a smooth paste (or you can use a little water to make it more "gravy-like", if you prefer). Add the yuba sticks and coat well. Lay side by side (touching eachother) on a greased cookie sheet one layer thick. Bake 25 minutes, or til bottoms are crisp. Remove from oven and mix them in a bowl with the barbeque sauce. return to pan and bake 10-15 minutes. Messy, but good. This is even better a day after making it! A great new way to serve yuba! 1 pkg. (6 oz.) Chinese yuba sticks PASTE INGREDIENTS: Soak the yuba in a large bowl of hot water until it is flexible. Drain and cut it into 1" pieces, discarding any hard bits. Grind together the Paste Ingredients in a food processor. Heat the oil in a deep skillet, stir-fry pan or wok. Add the ground ingredients, along with the lemon zest or lemon grass stalk. Sauté until fragrant. Add the drained yuba and stir to coat. Add the daikon, broth, tamarind, and coconut cream and stir well. Cover and simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes. Add the sugar and salt and simmer about 5 more minutes. Serve with rice. Servings: 4
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