Charred brussels sprouts with grapefruit and yuba

A recipe from my new book Plantasia!

It’s exactly 12 days to the release of my cookbook Plantasia: A Vegetarian Cookbook Through Asia and I’m so excited to get to celebrate the work with some of you at the book launch, happening at the wonderful Book Bar in Singapore. (RSVP if you’re coming!)

When I conceived of the book in 2020, there were few cookbooks focused on vegetable dishes that pair well with rice, or that wouldn’t be out of place in an Asian-style meal. Even if there wasn’t a vegetarian or a vegan friend coming over for dinner, I had very little inspiration for how to cook vegetables other than the usual chap chye, sambal kangkong, or leafy vegetables fried in garlic.

I scratched my own itch with Plantasia and you’ll find 88 recipes in the book that are compatible with the Asian palate. These are great-tasting, exciting vegetable dishes that your Asian mom or even grandma would love, and one of my favourites is the charred brussels sprouts with grapefruit and yuba.

Wex’s mom’s birthday falls on Christmas eve and she typically throws a party each year for friends and relatives. Last year, since Wex and I were in Singapore for Christmas, she asked if I could prepare a dish. The people at the party spanned all ages, and so I wanted something that was modern and relevant to the young ones but still could be appreciated by older guests.

When I told my mother-in-law that I intended to cook the brussels sprouts dish in the book, she was initially hesitant, saying that no one in her family likes brussels sprouts. After much persuasion from me, however, she caved.

From what I notice, brussels sprouts are one of the most popular vegetables during Christmastime, but they are often not very well-prepared. People don’t enjoy them because they can be rather pungent. In my opinion, they are at their best when seared or charred from edge to edge. The key is to halve them, toss in oil, and lay them cut side down on a pan or heatproof tray. Then, roast them aggressively so that they char deeply and turn mellow, tender, and complex in flavour.

In place of your usual croutons made out of bread, I use tofu sticks for crunch. These are a by-product of soymilk making, that you would find available at most, if not all, Asian grocers. As soymilk heats, a thin film forms on the surface. These are skimmed from the milk and hung to dry in the sun till they turn into translucent sheets (豆皮 dou pi or tau kee). It appears in Singaporean cuisine in so many forms, most commonly as a dumpling wrapper for meat or seafood mixtures in beancurd rolls, ngoh hiong, and yong tau foo.

The tofu skin can also be bunched up and dried over a pole to form beancurd sticks (腐竹 fu zhu or fu jok). Typically, dried tofu sticks are rehydrated in water before being added to chap chye or dessert soups, but they are truly delicious puffed. When steamed and deep-fried, they develop blisters like chicharron and turn audibly crunchy.

They aren’t too difficult to make. First, you steam the tofu sticks to soften them up a little. This will take only 5-10 minutes on high heat. You can touch them to check - they should feel bendy rather than hard and brittle. Next, snip them up into bite-sized chunks:

Heat some oil to 150-160°C before adding the tofu sticks. The temperature is important here! If the oil is too hot, the tofu sticks will brown right away and will not form those attractive blisters that are so texturally interesting! Flip them from time to time to help them blister on both sides. They might spit gently as a result of the residual moisture from steaming, but it’s nothing explosive or dangerous.

When puffed and blistered, remove them from the oil and drain on paper towels. At this point, they can be stored in an airtight container, for use - they are great in anything from salads, braises, chap chye, hot pots… you name it! They are dangerously good on their own too, especially when dipped in a flavourful sauce.

For this recipe, I toss the tofu sticks with the charred brussels sprouts, fresh grapefruit or pomelo, and a dressing made with sushi ginger, mayonnaise, sesame oil, lemon juice, and soy sauce. A scattering of nori over the top ties everything together and adds umami.

The older guests at the party marvelled that something as traditional as tofu sticks could be used in a salad, and my cousin-in-law declared his love for the brussels sprouts even though he usually hates them. To me, the dish and people’s reaction to it summed up what the book was all about. It was showing people that vegetables could be delicious and fit into an Asian context. You don’t need to eat Western-style salads all the time to enjoy your greens!

You can see me preparing the dish here:

I hope that you’ll give it a go - it is a particularly great dish to complement a potluck or Christmas feast in Asia. The following recipe serves 2 to 3, which is just the right amount for Wex and I to share, so scale up if you’re cooking for a crowd!

---

Charred brussels sprouts with grapefruit and yuba
Serves 2 to 3

2 tbsp oil
350g brussels sprouts, bases trimmed, halved
1/2 tsp salt
40g dried tofu sticks
Oil, as needed for deep-frying
3 tbsp Kewpie mayonnaise
3/4 tbsp Japanese rice vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
3/4 tsp sugar
45g Japanese pickled ginger, chopped
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 large grapefruit
A handful of nori strips

1. For the brussels sprouts, preheat the oven to 445°F/230°C. Meanwhile, in an ovenproof pan, preferably made of cast-iron, toss together 2 tbsp oil, 350g brussels sprouts (bases trimmed, halved) and 1/2 tsp salt.

2. Place the brussels sprouts cut side down in the pan and set the pan on high heat for a few minutes, or until the cut sides of the brussels sprouts turn light golden. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the brussels sprouts are tender and charred.

3. For the tofu sticks, on high heat for 5 to 10 minutes, steam 40g dried tofu sticks.

4. Once the tofu sticks have softened up nicely, remove them from the steamer and snip them into 2-inch/5cm lengths with a pair of scissors.

5. To a sauce pan set on high heat, add oil (as needed for deep-frying). When the oil heats up to 300°F/150°C, add the tofu sticks. Cook for about a minute, turning occasionally until they puff and blister. They should hardly develop any colour. If the oil is too hot, the tofu sticks will brown too quickly and blisters will not form. Remove the fried tofu from the pan and transfer them to a paper towel-lined dish to drain.

6. For the dressing, in a small bowl, mix together 3 tbsp Kewpie mayonnaise, 3/4 tbsp Japanese rice vinegar, 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce, 3/4 tsp sugar, 45g Japanese pickled ginger (chopped) and 1 1/2 tsp sesame oil.

7. To serve, with a knife, remove the skin and pith of 1 large grapefruit. Peel and cut the grapefruit into segments, then cut each segment into thirds crosswise. Place the grapefruit in a serving bowl or platter and toss with the brussels sprouts and tofu sticks.

8. Drizzle the dressing over everything and scatter over a handful of nori strips.