Sweet and sour lychees with tofu and pak choi
- Prepare
- less than 30 mins
- Cook
- 10 to 30 mins
- Serve
- Serves 4
A sweet and sour tofu dish with lychees, red pepper, chilli and pak choi.
Ingredients
For the sweet and sour lychees with tofu
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for deep-frying
- 400g/14oz firm tofu, drained, patted dry and cut into 2cm/¾in chunks
- 2 tbsp cornflour
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tbsp ginger, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 red onion, cut into 8 pieces
- 2 red Thai red chillies, sliced
- 1 red pepper, cut into chunks
- 25g/1oz lychees, drained, reserving 100ml/3½fl oz syrup
- 4 spring onions, sliced, to garnish
- sesame seeds, to garnish
For the sauce
- 3 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp tomato purée
- 100ml/3½fl oz reserved lychee syrup (see above)
- 1 tbsp palm sugar, to taste
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp cornflour mixed with 2 tbsp cold water
- a squeeze lime
For the pak choi
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 pak choi, sliced in half lengthways
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice wine
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Method
Preheat vegetable oil in a deep-fat fryer to 180C. (CAUTION: hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.)
Toss the tofu in the cornflour, then deep-fry until crispy. Set aside.
Heat the 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a saucepan and fry the garlic, ginger, red onion, chilli and red pepper for 5–10 minutes, or until softened.
To make the sauce, place all the ingredients into a bowl and whisk to combine. Add this to the saucepan and season. Add the lychees and tofu, then cook for 2 minutes until thickened. Garnish with the spring onions and sesame seeds.
To make the pak choi, heat the vegetable oil in a wok over a high heat and fry the pak choi cut-side down. Add some soy sauce, rice wine and sesame oil to the pan along with some water to steam. Cook for a few moments.
Serve the sweet and sour lychee and tofu alongside the pak choi.
