What is Indo Chinese cuisine?
Indo Chinese is a very popular style of cooking across India and is usually served on food carts. It is a fusion culinary style influenced by Chinese cuisine but adapted to Indian taste buds with the spices of India, thereby bringing the best of both the cuisines to the table. In most cases the food is cooked right in front of you and comes together quickly. The smell and sight of the food cooking on the food carts with fresh ingredients is an experience on its own. The food is usually spicy and hits all the right notes leaving you longing for more. A little more history of this cuisine based on the Wikipedia article we have linked- “The most popular origin story of the fusion food resides with the Chinese immigrants who landed in Calcutta, India and opened restaurants in that area. They adapted their culinary styles to suit the tastes of their Indian patrons.”
About Food Cart Style Indo-Chinese Tofu Stir Fry
Today I am sharing the food cart style Tofu Stir fry, which is a vegan adaptation of a similar dish usually made with chicken. This recipe is Plant-Based Whole30 compatible, which is a plant-based version of the original 30-day Whole30 reset. The recipe is spicy and is bursting with flavors while keeping Chinese flavors as the base. The tofu is roasted with the fusion of Chinese and Indian marinades. You can also marinate the tofu and bake it in the oven till crisp for 40 minutes or air fry it. I cooked this the traditional way on the stove top where the tofu is pan fried . Traditionally this is cooked with soy sauce but I substituted that with coconut aminos to keep it Whole30 compatible .The vegetables are cooked for a very short time on high heat to retain the crunch and to seal in the flavors while keeping them still refreshingly fresh.
Other Plant Based Whole30 Recipes on the Blog
“Chorizo” Chickpea Lettuce Wraps
Please leave us a rating or comment if you like our recipes! We love hearing from you!!
Food Cart Style Indo-Chinese Tofu Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 300 gms Extra firm tofu
- 1 onion
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 inch ginger julienned
- 3 cloves grated garlic
- 1/2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 3 tbsp coconut aminos
- 3 tbsp rice vinegar or Apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder or paprika
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 2 stalks spring onion for garnishing
- 1 tsp chilli flakes optional
Instructions
- Wrap the block of tofu with kitchen towels and place a heavy pan like a cast iron pan on it for 30 minutes. This will help to squeeze out of the water from the tofu.
- Chop the tofu to your desired shape – cubes or diamonds or strips
- For the marinade for tofu, mix the ginger garlic paste, and half the quantity of each of these ingredients – 1.5 tbsp coconut aminos, 1.5 tbsp rice vinegar, 1/2 tsp garam masala, 1 tsp kashmiri chilli powder, and 1/2 tsp coriander powder. Save the leftover ingredients for later in the cooking process.
- Add oil to a pan and pan roast the tofu pieces, till they are golden on both sides.
- Once golden, add the marinade and let it all soak into the tofu. Keep turning it to avoid burning. Once the tofu has absorbed all the marinade and cooked well , remove tofu and keep aside.
- Add some more oil to the same pan , add the grated garlic and juliened ginger and let these sizzle
- Add the tomato paste, and let it cook till the oil separates, followed by the remaining kashmiri chilli powder and garam masala
- Add the remaining coconut aminos and mix it all together
- Add the onions and the colored pepper and stir fry on high heat.
- Add the remaining vinegar and toss in the tofu.
- Give it all a good mix and let the flavors absorb for a minute in high heat. Add in the chilli flakes, which is optional.
- Garnish with chopped spring onions.
Jomelyn Mauermann
I love stir-fries! And this Indo-Chinese one is new to me. It looks delicious and can’t wait to try it.
Pri & Dee
Thank you! Would love for you to try it and give us your feedback!