Yong Tow Foo (Yong Tau Fu)

Yong Tow Foo (also spelled as Yong Tau Fu) is a Malaysian Hakka dish which literally means stuffed tofu. It’s a local delicacy.

Traditionally, the stuffing is made of ground pork, but the recipe has evolved and now widely stuffed with fish paste. Yong Tow Foo is also not limited to tofu only, but a variety of tofu products such as tau pok or fried tofu puffs, tofu skin, as well as a variety of vegetables such as okras, red chilies, green chilies, eggplant, bitter gourd, and so on.

In this Yong Tow Foo recipe, I used fish paste (or fish meat emulsion) I bought from the Asian/Vietnamese market in the United States. The picture is shown below.

While the Yong Tow Foo dishes served in Malaysia are usually drenched in a clear and soupy broth, I prefer my Yong Tow Foo steamed, lightly pan-fried and topped with yellow bean sauce, a recipe I learned from my late mother.

So, without further ado, here is my recipe for Malaysian Yong Tow Foo or stuffed tofu, chili, and okra with fish paste.

How Many Calories per Serving?

This recipe is only 391 calories per serving.

What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?

For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.

Asian Beef Stew

Asian Popcorn Chicken

Baby Bok Choy with Shrimp

Shrimp Omelette

Yield: 4 people

Yong Tow Foo (Yong Tau Fu)

Print

While the Yong Tow Foo dishes served in Malaysia are usually drenched in a clear and soupy broth, I prefer my Yong Tow Foo steamed, lightly pan-fried and topped with yellow bean sauce. 

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 Cha Ca Fish Meat Emulsion
• 6 red chilies, deseeded
• 6 okras / ladies fingers
• 10-12 fried tofu puffs

For fish paste seasoning:

• 1 stalk scallion, chopped
• 1 red chili, deseeded and chopped
• 3 dashes white pepper powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

For the sauce:

• 1 tablespoon taucheo, fermented yellow bean sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 cup water plus 1 teaspoon of corn starch, stir well

Instructions

1. Clean the okras and red chilies with water and slit in the middle (for stuffing). Discard the seeds of the red chilies, pat dry with paper towels. For the fried tofu puffs, poke an opening at the top surface with your finger (for stuffing). Set aside.
2. Add white pepper powder, sesame oil, chopped scallion and red chili into the fish emulsion and mix well.
3. Stuff the fish paste into the red chilies, okras, and fried tofu puffs using a butter knife. Fill the inside of the red chilies, okras, and tofu puffs but make sure that you do not over-stuff them.
4. Place the stuffed ingredients on a plate and steam for 5 minutes.
5. Pan-fried the steamed Yong Tow Foo lightly with some cooking oil. Dish up.
6. Heat up some oil in a wok and stir-fry the chopped garlic until light brown or fragrant. Add the taucheo (yellow bean sauce) and do a quick stir. Add water and sugar. As soon as the sauce thickens, add the Yong Tow Foo into the wok and stir well. Serve hot.

Notes

For the above serving, you need only half of the fish paste. The above fish paste is my personal favorite but you can substitute it with another brand. A good fish paste should be light grey in color (like the color of fresh fish meat). If the fish meat emulsion turns light brown or darker grey, it means the product has been frozen for a long time.

Nutrition Information

Yield

4

Serving Size

4 people
Amount Per Serving Calories 391Total Fat 44gSaturated Fat 5gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 1mgSodium 50mgCarbohydrates 35gFiber 10gSugar 10gProtein 90g