Time: 2 hours.
Complexity: easily
Servings: 4

Traditionally eaten by Buddhist monks, Buddha's Delight (Lo Han Jai) is now popular worldwide as a healthy Chinese vegetarian noodle dish. It's especially popular on the first day of the Lunar New Year (either for lunch or as a side dish for a festive dinner), and is considered a purifying start to the new year. In this version, all the vegetables and mushrooms are selected with texture and flavor in mind, resulting in a pleasant combination of crunchy and tender ingredients. Garlic and ginger are also included, although they may not be suitable for a strictly Buddhist diet. Feel free to mix and match other vegetables to suit your taste. For example, bamboo shoots, lotus root, bean sprouts, or carrots would all work well.

Ingredients:

• 80 g of dry soy asparagus (fu zhu), break into 5 cm pieces.
• 2/3 cup dried wood mushrooms (60 g)
• 12 medium dried shiitake mushrooms (60 g)
• 2 packages of 80 grams of glass noodles
• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp oyster sauce (vegetarian is fine)
• 2 teaspoons of sugar
• 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
• 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
• 2 tbsp. l. shaoxing wine
• 45 g red tofu (hong fu yu; about 3 pieces)
• 2 tbsp. vegetable, canola or peanut oil
• 1.5 tsp chopped ginger
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• Half a medium-sized head of Chinese cabbage (about 700 g), remove the core, cut into 2.5 cm pieces, thin leafy parts separately from thick ones
• 110 g snow peas or sugar snap peas, ends removed
• 1 tsp. dark sesame oil

Substituting ingredients
Measuring containers used

1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

We recommend

Preparation:

Step 1
• Soak the dried asparagus spears and wood-boring mushrooms in a large bowl of hot water until the asparagus spears are slightly moistened, about 1 hour. Drain and rinse under cold water, then drain again. Trim the tough stems from the wood-boring mushrooms and discard; chop the mushrooms into small pieces. Set aside along with the asparagus spears.
Step 2
• Soak the shiitake mushrooms in hot water at room temperature until they plump up, about 1 hour. Remove the shiitake mushrooms from the liquid, then strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a measuring cup, adding enough cold water, if necessary, to make up 2/3 cup of the liquid. Trim and discard the stems of the shiitake mushrooms, then cut the mushrooms into 1-cm pieces. Set aside.
Step 3
• Soak the glass noodles in a separate medium bowl of warm water until soft, about 30 minutes. Drain the noodles and set aside.
Step 4
• In a small bowl, combine light soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, dark soy sauce, white pepper, 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine, and 0.5 teaspoon salt until the sugar dissolves. In a separate small bowl, mash the red tofu into a paste. Set aside.
Step 5
• In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil over high heat. Blanch the wood-boring mushrooms and asparagus spears until tender, about 3 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Step 6
• Heat a wok over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add the vegetable oil and heat until thoroughly heated. Stir-fry the ginger and garlic until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add the red tofu paste (set the bowl aside for later) and stir-fry until smooth and fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the shiitake mushrooms and white parts of the napa cabbage and cook until the cabbage begins to soften and the tofu darkens, about 2 minutes.
Step 7
• Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of Shaoxing wine, then add most of the 2/3 cup mushroom liquid (reserve a couple of tablespoons) and bring to a boil, covered, over high heat. Once boiling, add the wood-porcini mushrooms and asparagus, cover, and cook over high heat until the cabbage pieces are tender, about 4 minutes.
Step 8
• Add the remaining sauce, then pour some of the remaining mushroom liquid into the sauce bowl and the rest into the red tofu bowl to loosen any remaining sauce or tofu. Pour everything into the wok and stir. Taste the liquid and add more salt if needed. Transfer the vegetables to the wok and add the glass noodles and cabbage leaves. Stir to coat the noodles in the liquid and cook, covered, until the noodles are tender, about 2 minutes.
Step 9
• Uncover and toss the noodles to coat them evenly with the sauce. Add the green peas and toss to distribute. Heat through. Drizzle with dark sesame oil and toss.

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