[Recipe] Chinese Steamed Tofu with Shrimp and Scallops

Steamed tofu is a popular dish in Chinese cuisine where firm tofu is the base while the toppings may vary. Tofu is a great canvas in absorbing different sauces and seasoning and begs to be dressed up.

My parents normally top the tofu with seasoned ground pork and sweetened soy sauce. My in-laws love to keep the steamed tofu simple with diced green onions and soy sauce. This version is topped with shrimp and scallops, finished with a soy sauce that has a few added ingredients including sesame oil and ginger.

This version is fancy, looks beautiful, quick to prepare and make. With a bit of prep work, this dish takes less than 10 minutes of cooking time on the stove top making this dish perfect for both weeknights and a fancy dinner with guests.

I have used frozen scallops U15 size and black tigers shrimps that I had thawed a few hours before cooking. Make sure to use a paper towel to soak up access water before marinating or cooking them. I apologize that I do not remember the shrimp size, but buy the ones that are smaller than the size of your tofu. As for the tofu, I left the tofu as is from the container but feel free to cut it to a smaller size.

See? A fancy dish can be easy to make too!

Happy eating!

Preparation work for the steamed tofu

Chinese steamed tofu with shrimp and scallop

Course Tofu

Cuisine Cantonese

Author Mary Tang

Ingredients

5 tiger shrimps -peeled and deveined
5 scallops Cut 1 cm thick
5 square tofus almost 2 pounds. Each tofu in the package was about 2 x 2 inches wide, and 2 inches high
1/4 cup of scallions diced including the white parts
4 cups of water for steaming Add more as needed
1/3 cup of sesame oil

Shrimp marinade

1/2 tsp of sesame oil
Pinch of salt

Sauce

1/4 cup of sliced ginger
2 tsp of sesame oil
1/4 cup of soy sauce
1/4 tsp of sugar

Instructions

Peel and devein the shrimp.
Marinade the shrimp. Add the sesame oil and salt to the shrimp and mix well. Refrigerate for at least 30 mins to 4 hours.
Cut the scallops lengthwise and refrigerate until ready to use.
Dice the green onions and set aside.
Place the tofu on a plate. Add the shrimp and scallop on top of the tofu. It doesn't matter if the scallop or the shrimp goes first.
Prepare the tofu for steaming. I used a wok and added water, and a trivet. Once the water boils, place the dish with the seafood topped tofu in the wok and close the lid. Steam for 6 minutes on high or until the shrimp turns pink. Remove from heat.
As there will be lots of water from the tofu at the base of the dish, the water needs to be drained. Transfer the tofu into a new dish, or carefully drain the liquid using the same dish.
In a separate pot, turn the heat on medium-high and add sesame oil, followed by the ginger. Cook for about 1 minute. The ginger should be cooked through but not deep fried. Adjust the heat as needed. Add the soy sauce and sugar. Mix well and turn off the heat.
Pour the sauce on top of the tofu. Sprinkle with green onions, drizzle the sesame oil and serve immediately.