THE DARING COOKS' OCTOBER 2011 CHALLENGE: MOO SHU

First of all, I'd like to say I'm so glad to have participated in this month's Daring Cooks' challenge because Shelley and Ruth are two of my favorite bloggers...I always read their posts and comment on their blogs. And secondly, I love anything Eastern/Asian because I am Asian..duh. So I knew that I couldn't and shouldn't miss this for anything in the world!

The October Daring Cooks' Challenge was hosted by Shelley of C Mom Cook and her sister Ruth of The Crafts of Mommyhood. They challenged us to bring a taste of the East into our home kitchens by making our own Moo Shu, including thin pancakes, stir fry and sauce.
Hmm, interesting challenge...but what exactly is Moo Shu? According to our hosts...

Simply put, Moo Shu is a stir fry, containing thinly sliced or shredded vegetables, meat (traditionally) and scrambled egg. It is usually served on flat, thin, steamed pancakes, and is accompanied by a complementary sauce.

I decided to make Moo Shu Tofu as filling for my thin pancakes but I wasn't able to make my own Hoisin sauce so I just used the store-bought variety.
TOFU STIRFRY
Ingredients:

2 blocks TOFU, sliced

Handful Mung Bean Sprouts

1 cup Fresh Bamboo Shoots, boiled and strained

2 pieces Eggs

Spring Onions, sliced

1 tablespoon Soy Sauce

a few drops Sesame Oil

Black Pepper, ground

Directions:
Preheat pan with oil, pan-fry sliced tofu until golden brown. Drain on paper towels, set aside. On same pan, saute spring onions until fragrant, add bean sprouts, bamboo shoots. Add beaten eggs and stir fry with the vegetables. Season with soy sauce, ground black pepper and a few drops of sesame oil to finish. Top with tofu. Use as filling for pancakes.

THIN PANCAKES

Makes 24-30 pancakes
Preparation time: about 10 minutes plus 30 minutes standing time
Cooking time: 45-50 minutes
Ingredients
4 cups (960 ml)(560 gr) ALL PURPOSE FLOUR
About 1 1/2 cup (300 ml) BOILING WATER
1 teaspoon (5 ml) VEGETABLE OIL
DRY FLOUR for dusting

1. Sift flour into mixing bowl. Gently pour in the water, stirring as you pour, then stir in the oil. Knead the mixture into a soft but firm dough. If your dough is dry, add more water, one tablespoon at a time, to reach the right consistency. Cover with a damp towel and let stand for 30 minutes.
2. Lightly dust the surface of the worktop with dry flour. Knead dough for 6-8 minutes or until smooth, then divide into 3 equal portions. Roll out each portion into a long sausage and cut each sausage into 8-10 pieces. Keep the dough that you are not actively working with covered with a lightly damp dishcloth to keep from drying out.
3. Roll each piece into a ball, then using the palm of your hand, press each piece into a flat pancake. Dust the worktop with more dry flour. Flatten each pancake into a 6-8 inch (15cm-20cm) circle with a rolling pin, rolling gently on both sides.
4. Place an ungreased frying pan over high heat. Once the pan is hot, lower the heat to low and place the pancakes one at a time, in the pan. Remove when light brown spots appear on the underside. Cover with a damp cloth until ready to serve.

To assemble: Lay the pancake and spread a bit of Hoisin. Top with the Tofu Stirfry, roll the pancake, tucking in the bottom to prevent filling from spilling. Enjoy!

Thank you Shelley and Ruth for this month's wonderful challenge! I had so much fun making the pancakes and filling and eating them as well!

For the other Daring Cooks Moo Shu click here.