In the coming weeks, I would love to introduce a new, trendy Chinese cooking method— Shui Men Cai. And my top recommendation is this one-pot tofu-and-beef dish.
If you use this recipe, you will get tender and well-flavored tofu in one pot. After trying this new method, I fell in love with it immediately, and I hope to present you with some of the best combinations.
The universal method for all shui men cai is quite simple. Lay your favorite veggies at the bottom of the pot, then spread marinated meat on top, add seasonings, and let everything steam together for just 7 minutes.
It’s basically a one-pot wonder where the meat’s juices drip down, flavoring the vegetables below. The best part? Minimal oil, maximum flavor, and almost zero effort. Compared to classic stir-fry, there is no need to control the heat, worry about a sticky bottom, or mess with the seasonings and sauces. But the dish will taste different.
The fried version has more flavors due to the Maillard reaction. But we all love easy-to-cook dishes.
Ingredients
- 1 box of silken tofu
- a small bunch of golden needle mushrooms, or bean sprouts
- Scallion or coriander for decoration
Beef and marinating
- 200g beef, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp. light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp. water
- 1/4 tsp. white pepper
- 1 tbsp. cornstarch
- 1 tbsp. vegetable cooking oil
Sauce
- 3 tbsp. light soy sauce (low sodium)
- 1 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp. sesame oil
- 1/2 to 1 tsp. salt (taste your sauce and see how much is needed)
- 1/2 tsp. sugar
- 2 fresh Thai peppers (optional), cut into small sections
- 2 garlic cloves
Step by step
Cut beef, against the grain, into thin slices. Add light soy sauce, water, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, and pepper. Mix well until well combined. Lastly, add vegetable cooking oil and mix well.
Get a pot with a lid, grease the pan with some oil, add tofu to the bottom (remember to break it), top with golden needle mushrooms (or bean sprouts), and pour half of the sauce on.
Then spread the beef slices evenly on the surface. Pour the remaining sauce over.
Cover the lid and simmer for 7 minutes over medium-low fire.
Add scallion and coriander before serving. That’s it. We are done with super-easy one-pot tofu and beef, a comforting dish on cool winter days.
Tofu and Beef
Ingredients
- 1 box of silken tofu
- a small bunch of golden needle mushrooms or bean sprouts
- Scallion or coriander for decoration
Beef and marinating
- 200 g beef thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp. light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 2 tbsp. water
- 1/2 tsp. dark soy sauce for the coloring
- 1/4 tsp. white pepper
- 1 tbsp. cornstarch
- 1 tbsp. vegetable cooking oil
Sauce
- 2 tbsp. light soy sauce low sodium
- 1 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 1 tbsp. sesame oil
- 1/2 to 1 tsp. salt taste your sauce and see how much is needed
- 1/2 tsp. sugar
- 2 fresh Thai peppers optional, cut into small sections
- 2 garlic cloves
Instructions
- Cut beef, against the grain, into thin slices. Add light soy sauce, water, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, and pepper. Mix well until well combined. Lastly, add vegetable cooking oil and mix well.
- To make the sauce, combine light soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt, sugar, sesame oil and chopped pepper and garlic together.
- Get a pot with a lid, add tofu to the bottom, top with golden needle mushrooms (or bean sprouts). Add half of the sauce. Then spread the beef slices evenly on the surface and add the remeaning sauce.
- Pour the sauce over. Cover the lid and simmer over middle fire for 7 minutes.
- Add scallion and coriander before serving. That’s it. We are done with super easy one-pot tofu and beef.
