Silken Tofu in Ginger Syrup

(Tau Hu Nuoc Duong)

November 24: Feast Day of the Vietnamese Martyrs

We have a few Vietnamese friends from church, some of whom are older and shared stories about their struggles when they came over as “boat people” to America. They had incredible tales, but they survived, worked hard to adapt to a new country and culture and flourished. And we admire that they never lost their faith through it all!

We cannot imagine what the faithful suffered more in their country of origin because they were Christians. Thousands were martyred between the mid-1700s until the mid-1800s. Read more about this sad history HERE and HERE.

There are several delicious Vietnamese recipes we could post for the Feast Day of the Vietnamese Martyrs, but we decided to keep it simple and solemn. This particular recipe for silken tofu in ginger syrup comes from one of our brides (we were her marriage sponsors at church) who brought it from her aunt’s café to a marriage preparation dinner session at our home. She said it can be served as a refreshing cool dessert or heartwarming soup. Either way, this is our sweet post to honor the Vietnamese martyrs on their feast day.

Recipe

(From Lina V.)

Ingredients

  • 1 package (12-14 ounces) silken tofu
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 – 1½ cups brown sugar
  • 2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced into 1 inch slivers

Directions

In a saucepan, place the water, brown sugar and ginger slivers. Bring to a boil, then let simmer on low heat for 30 minutes. Remove from stovetop and let cool. Strain the liquid in a container, reserving the ginger slivers for optional garnish.

Drain the liquid from the tofu package. Slice the tofu into bite sized pieces. Place in serving bowls. Ladle some liquid over the tofu. Serve in dessert cups.

Notes

  • Silken tofu in ginger syrup, also known as dòuhuā, doufuhua or taho, is a popular street food in South Asia. Many people make the tofu fresh, but we are lazy and just buy it ready-made in packages.
  • We hope to add more Vietnamese recipes to our blog in the near future. So keep checking back under the Theme Menus tab.