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Preparation
15 minutes
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Cooking
45 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Change up the flavor with new braised dishes with the unique banana and tofu stew. Join into the kitchen with Điện máy XANH to make this dish right away!
Ingredients for Banana and Tofu Stew Serves 4 people
Pork belly 300 g Green bananas 7 pieces White tofu 50 g Green onions 4 stalks Vietnamese perilla 1 stalk Betel leaves 5 leaves Fresh chili 3 pieces Shrimp paste 2 teaspoons Turmeric juice 2 tablespoons Fermented rice water 1 tablespoon Vinegar 50 ml Red onion 1 bulb Cooking oil 1 tablespoon Common seasoning a little (salt/ seasoning powder/ monosodium glutamate/ pepper)
Tools needed
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose fresh pork belly
- Choose pieces of meat that are bright pink, have a distinctive fragrant smell, with a layer of fat interspersed with bright, firm lean meat. Press the meat with your hand to see if it quickly returns to its original shape.
- Do not buy pieces of meat that have a strange smell, are mushy, have yellow fat, lack elasticity, have dull colors, or are slimy.
How to choose good tofu
- Good tofu has a slightly cloudy white color, if the tofu has a yellowish hue it often contains gypsum, the more yellow it is, the more gypsum it has. The inside of the tofu appears spongy, fluffy, not hard, and the four corners are not too square, indicating that it does not contain gypsum.
- Pure tofu has a light, characteristic smell, while tofu containing gypsum often has a pungent lime smell.
- You can buy tofu at markets and supermarkets, or you can try making it at home using TasteVN’s recipe.
How to choose fresh green bananas
- For a tastier dish, you should not choose ripe bananas or overly green bananas, but rather select mature green bananas.
- Choose banana clusters that are dark green, with firm, evenly curved fruit; if there are small spots turning slightly yellow, that’s even better, as these are fresh bananas that have not been treated with chemicals.
How to prepare Banana meat stew
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Prepare the bananas
Green bananas purchased should be peeled, soaked in vinegar to reduce sap, then cut in half and then diagonally sliced. Next, put the bananas into a bowl of water mixed with vinegar to keep them from browning.
After that, wash the bananas thoroughly with water and let them drain.
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Prepare other ingredients
Clean the green onions, chop them finely.
Wash the wild betel leaves and Vietnamese balm leaves, drain, then cut into strips.
Pork belly should be rinsed briefly with diluted salt water. After that, rinse it with clean water several times and cut into slices about 1 finger thick.
How to clean pork belly without odor
- To remove the odor from the pork, before cooking, blanch the pork slices in boiling water for about 2 minutes, then take them out and rinse with cold water.
- Adding a little white wine to the blanching water is also very effective in eliminating the smell.
Rinse the tofu with clean water, cut it into cubes, and fry it.
Peel and thinly slice the purple onion.
Wash the chili, remove the stem, and cut into strips.
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Marinate the meat
Marinate the meat with 1 spoon of pepper, 1 spoon of shrimp paste, 1/3 spoon of sugar, 1/2 spoon of salt, 1 spoon of seasoning powder, then mix well for the meat to absorb the spices.
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Braised banana and tofu
Place a pan on the stove, turn on high heat, add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil. Wait for the oil to heat up, then add chopped purple onion and fry until fragrant.
Next, add the pork belly and stir-fry until cooked, then add the pre-processed bananas and stir well.
When the ingredients turn slightly brown, add 1 teaspoon of shrimp paste, 2 tablespoons of turmeric juice, and 1 tablespoon of fermented rice and continue to stir well.
Add a little water to the pan, making sure the water covers the ingredients and braise for about 15 minutes on low heat.
Finally, just add the fried tofu, gently press the tofu into the water. Continue to cook for about 2 minutes, then taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking, add a little perilla leaves, betel leaves, and sliced chili, turn off the heat and serve in a bowl (or deep dish).
Tip
- You should add the tofu last to avoid it breaking down and becoming mushy while braising, which affects the dish’s flavor.
- Additionally, you can use a clay pot to prepare the dish, which will help the braised meat with banana and tofu to be delicious and authentic.
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Final Product
The braised pork with banana and tofu, when completed, has a beautiful golden-brown color, with a slight aroma from shrimp paste and turmeric. The meat is tender and fragrant, while the banana and tofu are soft, not bitter, and the broth is rich in flavor.
You can enjoy it right away or serve it with white rice or noodles, both of which complement the dish and are very delicious!
See more
I hope that with the recipe for the dish braised meat with banana and tofu that Điện máy XANH shares with you today, you can show off your cooking skills to your family and friends. Wishing you success!
*Refer to the images and recipe from the YouTube channel Flavors of the Homeland
