Black Bean Mushroom Stuffed Tofu Puffs (豉汁酿油豆腐)
Stuffed tofu puffs with fermented black beans, two kinds of mushrooms, and edamame. Freeze raw, steam until hot, pour the Sweet & Sour Dim Sum Sauce over at the end.
Tofu puffs are one of the best freezer ingredients in Chinese cooking. Their honeycomb sponge interior opens up even more after freezing — they become the ultimate sauce-absorbing vessel. You stuff them raw, freeze them with no sauce, steam them until hot, and pour the glossy Sweet & Sour Dim Sum Sauce over the moment you lift the lid. That pour is the moment.
The filling is savory, earthy, and layered — fermented black beans (豆豉), two kinds of mushrooms, edamame, and mashed tofu. Part of the Prep Raw, Eat Fresh vegetarian meal prep system. Full guide and sauce recipe at the hub post.
Ingredients
Mushroom weights are dry weight before soaking. Makes enough filling for multiple containers.
- 8–10 tofu puffs (油豆腐), medium size
Filling:
- ½ block (about 200g) extra-firm tofu (老豆腐), mashed
- 100g shelled edamame, thawed
- 2 tbsp fermented black beans (豆豉 Dou Chi) — whole beans, not paste. Rinse and roughly chop.
- 35g dried wood ear mushrooms (木耳) — dry weight. Soak 20 min, drain, finely chop.
- 100g dried shiitake mushrooms (干香菇) — dry weight. Soak 30 min, squeeze dry, finely minced.
Seasoning:
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- ½ tsp sugar
After steaming — do not freeze:
- Sweet & Sour Dim Sum Sauce — 3 tbsp per container. Recipe at hub post.
Directions
Prep Raw — Sunday
- De-oil the puffs: pour hot vegetable blanching water over them. Let sit 1 minute. Squeeze gently — water turns yellow. Drain and pat dry.
- Soak mushrooms: shiitake 30 min, wood ear 20 min. Drain, squeeze shiitake dry, remove stems. Mince shiitake, chop wood ear.
- Make filling: combine tofu, edamame, black beans, mushrooms, soy sauce, cornstarch, sugar. Mix until chunky and cohesive.
- Stuff puffs: scissors to cut a slit, push filling in firmly.
- Pack tightly upright in container. Seal and freeze. No sauce before freezing.
Steam Fresh — Weeknight
- Remove from freezer. Do not thaw. Steam directly from frozen.
- Start checking at 22–25 minutes. Ready when a skewer through a center puff feels hot on your wrist.
- Tilt lid away, stand back, pour sauce over hot puffs. Let sit 2 minutes. Serve.
Fresh made: start checking at 10–12 minutes.
Use oven mitts on both hands when pouring the sauce. Steam from hot puffs can burn your pouring hand. Tilt lid away first.
Chinese Mom Tips
💚 Chinese Mom Tip: Use your vegetable blanching water to de-oil the puffs — it is already seasoned. Zero extra pots. Zero waste.
💚 Chinese Mom Tip: Never pour the sauce before steaming. Black vinegar cooked for 20 minutes goes completely flat. Pour it over hot puffs at the very end.