{"id":4356,"date":"2021-02-05T11:31:17","date_gmt":"2021-02-05T16:31:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/picklesandtea\/?p=4356"},"modified":"2021-02-05T11:37:33","modified_gmt":"2021-02-05T16:37:33","slug":"chinese-new-year-recipe-lo-han-jai-or-buddhas-delight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/picklesandtea\/chinese-new-year-recipe-lo-han-jai-or-buddhas-delight\/","title":{"rendered":"Chinese New Year Recipe: Lo Han Jai or Buddha’s Delight"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"plate<\/a>

An assortment of vegetables stir-fried together make for a healthful and “cleansing” new year dish [Photo credit: Ezume Images]<\/p><\/div>\n

Commonly known as Buddha\u2019s Delight, this vegetarian dish is usually eaten on the first day of the Chinese New Year. I\u2019ve turned it into an everyday dish using some of my favorite vegetables with miso paste added for a truly delicious sauce!<\/p>\n

For new year, the following are commonly included ingredients. Most of them are considered \u201clucky\u201d because of how they look (they may be red or gold in color) or their Chinese names are homonyms for wealth, riches, good fortune, etc., etc. Feel free to mix and match, or just use whatever you can find.<\/p>\n

Black moss\/Fat choy\u202f(\u53d1\u83dc;  f\u00e0 c\u00e0i)
\nBamboo shoots\u202f(\u7af9\u7b0b, zh\u00fa s\u01d4n)
\nBean curd sheets\/sticks(\u8150\u7af9; f\u01d4 zh\u00fa)
\nBlack mushrooms\u202f(\u51ac\u83c7; d\u014dngg\u016b)
\nMung bean threads\u202f( \u7c89\u4e1d ; f\u011bn s\u012b)
\nDay lily buds\u202f(\u91d1\u9488; j\u012bnzh\u0113n)
\nGinkgo nuts (\u767d\u679c; b\u00e1i gu\u01d2)
\nLotus seeds\u202f(\u83b2\u5b50; li\u00e1nz\u01d0)
\nChinese\/Napa cabbage\u202f(\u5927\u767d\u83dc; d\u00e0 b\u00e1i c\u00e0i)
\nPeanuts\u202f(\u82b1\u751f; hu\u0101 sh\u0113ng)
\nFried\u202ftofu\u202f(\u70b8\u8c46\u8150; zh\u00e1 d\u00f2u f\u01d4)
\nWater chestnuts\u202f(\u8378\u8360; b\u00ed q\u00ed)
\nWheat gluten\u202f(\u9762\u7b4b; mi\u00e0n j\u012bn)
\nFried tofu puffs (\u6cb9\u8c46\u8150; y\u00f3u d\u00f2u fu)
\nWood\/cloud ear fungus (\u6728\u8033; m\u00f9 \u011br)
\nRed dates or jujubes\u202f(\u7ea2\u67a3; h\u00f3ng z\u01ceo)
\nLotus root\u202f(\u83b2\u85d5 ; li\u00e1n \u01d2u)
\nChinese chives(\u97ed\u83dc; ji\u01d4 c\u00e0i)
\nSnow peas(\u8377\u5170\u8c46; h\u00e9 l\u00e1n d\u00f2u)
\nCarrots (\u80e1\u841d\u535c; h\u00fa lu\u00f3 bo)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

PREP TIME: <\/strong>15 minutes TOTAL TIME: <\/strong>30 minutes MAKES: <\/strong>4 to 6 servings<\/p>\n

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
\n3 tablespoons minced garlic (3 medium cloves)
\n3 green onions, white parts finely chopped, green parts cut into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces
\n2 tablespoons white miso
\n1 large carrot, peeled and cut into 1-inch-thick (2.5-cm) pieces
\n4 ounces (120 g) fresh or rehydrated black mushrooms, halved (save the mushroom soaking water if using dried)
\n8 ounces (225 g) Chinese cabbage, cored and cut into 2-inch (5-cm) squares
\n8 ounces (225 g) firm tofu, cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) squares or triangles
\n2 dried beancurd sheets\/sticks, broken into 2-inch pieces, soaked for 15 minutes in warm water and drained (2 ounces\/60 g)
\n2 tablespoons soy sauce
\n1 teaspoon sugar
\n\u00bd teaspoon fine sea salt
\n1 small bundle (1 ounce\/30 g) mung bean threads cut into shorter pieces
\n1 cup mushroom soaking water or water
\n1 teaspoon sesame oil<\/p>\n

Directions:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Select SAUT\u00c9 and set to MEDIUM\/NORMAL. Add the vegetable oil. When the pot is hot, add the garlic and the white portions of the green onions. Stir and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add the miso paste and stir and cook for 30 seconds. Add the carrot, cabbage and mushrooms, stirring between each addition. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Press CANCEL.<\/li>\n
  2. Add the soy sauce, sugar and mushroom water. Stir to mix, scraping the bottom of the pot to remove any cooked-on bits and avoid the BURN warning.  <\/li>\n
  3. Add the beancurd sheets and mung bean threads and mix everything together. Make sure the noodles are covered. Lock the lid. Select PRESSURE COOK\/MANUAL and set the pressure to HIGH for 2 minutes. Make sure the steam release valve is sealed. Once pressurized (8 to 10 minutes), the cook cycle will start. When the timer beeps, manually release the pressure. When the float valve drops, press CANCEL and open the lid. <\/li>\n
  4. Add the sesame oil and remaining green onions. Stir for 1 to 2 minutes until the sauce reduces a little. There should be some sauce left, and it will thicken on standing. Serve immediately with steamed rice.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

    NOTES: <\/strong><\/p>\n

    You can easily make this as a regular stir-fry in your pan or wok. Let the veggies braise covered on medium-low for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the beancurd sheets and bean threads are cooked to your liking. <\/p>\n

    White miso or shiro miso <\/em>is made from soybeans that have been fermented with a large percentage of rice. The actual resulting color can range from white to light beige, and the miso has a definite sweet taste. Use more soy sauce or salt if you prefer not to use it. Other than Chinese cabbage, bok choy, chrysanthemum greens or other leafy Chinese greens would be great in this dish. Snow peas too!<\/p>\n

    If you can\u2019t find dried tofu sheets, use more firm tofu or tofu puffs.<\/p>\n

    Recipe from Instant Pot Asian Pressure Cooker Meals<\/a> (Tuttle Publishing, 2020)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Commonly known as Buddha\u2019s Delight, this vegetarian dish is usually eaten on the first day of the Chinese New Year. I\u2019ve turned it into an everyday dish using some of my favorite vegetables with miso paste added for a truly delicious sauce! For new…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4357,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[109,7,712,997,110,1041,650,640,610,399,955],"tags":[236,122,780,774],"class_list":["post-4356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrations","category-chinese","category-cook-books","category-family-style","category-food-traditions","category-instant-pot-2","category-main-course","category-recipes","category-stir-frying","category-vegan","category-vegetarian-2","tag-chinese-new-year","tag-chinese-new-year-foods","tag-vegan","tag-vegetarian"],"yoast_head":"\nChinese New Year Recipe: Lo Han Jai or Buddha's Delight - Pickles and Tea<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/apa.si.edu\/picklesandtea\/chinese-new-year-recipe-lo-han-jai-or-buddhas-delight\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chinese New Year Recipe: Lo Han Jai or Buddha's Delight - Pickles and Tea\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"  Commonly known as Buddha\u2019s Delight, this vegetarian dish is usually eaten on the first day of the Chinese New Year. 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