“Black salt can make tofu taste like eggs.” First time I heard that, I thought “Really? How?” I must try this myself. I looked all over locally for black salt but sadly it was nowhere to be found.
Then one day, a spice vendor popped up at the farmers market of all places and they had it. Even though it’s called black salt, it’s actually purplish pink in color. I had no idea there’s more than one type of black salt, the one to get is called Kala Namak or Sanchal or Indian Black Salt. Originally used in authentic Indian cooking, the mineral salt has a strong, sulfuric flavor and aroma, kinda like hard-boiled eggs.
Now, that I have said salt in my possession, what to do with it? I decided on a blast from the past. Growing up, my parents ran a Chinese-American restaurant that served egg foo young. I remember it all too well.
Along with my siblings, one of our jobs was to finely chop up the celery and onions that went into the patties. And bean sprouts, which we chopped up with an empty can. And lots and lots of eggs and flour.
Mom or Dad would mix it all up together and used an ice cream scoop to portion out each patty onto a hot griddle. It was later deep-fried to order and topped with brown gravy and green onions.
For a vegan version, I swapped out the eggs for tofu and added some of my favorite ingredients – fresh shiitake mushrooms, leeks and water chestnuts. Baked instead of pan-fried, it’s so much better and flavorful than the eggy version. It’s good with or without the gravy.
Tofu “Egg” Foo Yung
Makes 8-10 patties
6 fresh shiitake mushrooms, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 medium leek, white and some green part, chopped
3 ounces water chestnuts
1 teaspoon oil
14 ounce package of extra-firm tofu
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon or to taste kala namak
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 stalk green onion, chopped, for garnish
Gravy
1 cup vegetable broth
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Drain and rinse the tofu, wrap in paper towels and place a heavy weight on top. Press for about an hour. While the tofu is pressing, chop the vegetables.
Heat a wok to hot. When hot, add the oil and swirl to coat the wok. Add the celery and leeks, sauté for a few minutes, add the mushrooms and water chestnuts and cook for another minute or so. Place in a bowl and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Crumble the tofu, add the rest of the ingredients and blend well together. Scoop out a 1/4 cup of the mixture and shape into a patty on a oiled baking sheet. Brush the top of each patty with oil, flip over and brush the other side. Bake for 15 minutes, gently flip over and bake another 15 minutes.
To make the gravy, heat the broth with the soy sauce and sugar. Combine the cornstarch with a little bit of cold water and mix until smooth. When the broth comes to a boil, slowly add the cornstarch mixture and stir to desired thickness.
Top the foo yung with gravy and garnish with the green onions, serve immediately.
Where to find kala namak?
The vendor at the farmers market is a local company, Spice Hound, for their 2.5 oz jar, it was $7.00. I have since found the black salt labeled as Sanchal at an Indian market for cheaper. Also available online at Amazon from a number of vendors.
I’ve never had real egg foo young, but this version sounds really tasty!
Now this is a dish I’ve never seen veganized before! Very nifty, I’ll have to try it.
Kala namak is pretty interesting. I sometimes add it to pancakes and quick breads for a richer taste. The egg flavor, though, is most pronounced if you sprinkle it on “omelets” or tofu at the end of cooking.
I used to have egg foo yung often when I was a child, but haven’t had it since becoming vegetarian. Thanks for veganizing the recipe!
Wow, looks delicious! I want some and its only 6am.
Erin – I hardly ever ate egg foo yung before, I like the vegan version a lot better. I’ve made it several times now. :-)
Hannah – It wasn’t too hard to veganized, I’m really happy with how it came out.
Andrea – Never thought to try adding it to pancakes and bread, that does sound interesting. I have noticed that sprinkling the black salt on top has a more eggy flavor.
Noelle – I just had some of the leftovers for breakfast. :-)
Looks awesome and so delicious Chow!!! Such a creative vegan dish!
i was so excited when i read about black salt in vegan brunch?…aghh….it smells so much like eggs i tossed my “omelette” and the entire package of the smelly stuff….i guess there may be a reason i don’t eat eggs….but your recipe looks great…i’ll be trying it minus the salt
Thank you for this. I haven’t eaten eggs for years, and have missed the taste of egg-foo-yung. I may add the beansprouts and see how that turns out.
Oh yum.
Morgan – Thanks!
susan – I got to sample the black salt before I bought it, so I knew what it smells and taste like. The foo yung is still good with just regular salt.
Sister Tinh Quang – I’m not a fan of bean sprouts even though it’s an usual ingredient in foo yung. But it’ll probably be fine in there.
trina – Double yum. :-)
Even though I used to love eggs, I’ve never had egg foo young before- I really want to try this.
Thanks for the salt tip, I will try that on my next tofu scramble.
Alex
This looks AMAZING! Very different from what I’m used to seeing, I cannot WAIT to try it!! I hope you’ll check out my blog and let me know what you think, I’m new to this whole blogging thing (but lovvvee to cook and want to share my recipes): http://anditsvegan.blogspot.com/
Just found your blog and am so happy! Lots of delicious looking recipes! I always loved egg foo yung, but this veganized version looks even better, fantastic ingredients, now I just need to find some black salt!!
I’ve never had this dish (Chinese restaurants in Finland rarely serve anything but sauces & rice/noodles and spring rolls), but this vegan version has me intrigued.
I’m shocked you paid $7 for the black salt! I think I paid like 1.20 euros for a big bag.
This looks awesome! We’ve just been getting into fancy salts ourselves (truffle salt and what I thought was smoked salt, but maybe is black salt). We’ll definitely be rocking some variation of this very soon. Very inspiring!
Hi,
Can you make this with crumbled tempeh?
Thanks!
P.S. This looks ten times better than the egg version.
AZ – I haven’t tried it with crumbled tempeh. If you do, you’ll probably have to add some other binder to make it whole together.
I’m so glad i found this site! This use to be my favorite food before i was vegan and now i’m happy i can have it again! THANK YOU :)
I just got done eating this and it was amazing!! It tasted exactly like the egg foo young I used to always eat. Great recipe! Thanks for sharing.
Wow, that look amazing.
Thank You! I thought I had to give up Egg Foo Yong, one my fav Chinese dishes, thanks for giving it back to me!
I followed your recipe, and mine’s came out beautifully!
I found the link to this on Pinterest and made it tonight – I can’t believe it’s tofu – the flavours are amazing. I love this and will be making it again by request from the meat eaters!
You can find Black Salt in any Indian Grocery Store.
Look for Black Salt/Kaala Namak.
I found black salt for the first time today. I can’t believe that it tastes just like eggs. I’m looking up different recipes to try it in now, I’m definitely going to try these.
I remember when I first found the right black salt, kala namak. I was so happy. :-)
Wow! Just made this for lunch for family. Amazing! Tastes just like the “real” stuff, only better. Thank you :)
I have made this so many times now. Thank you sooo much for the recipe. I add my own touches according to my tastes but this is awesome. I love it.
This has been my go to recipe for egg foo young for years now. It’s my comfort food when I don’t feel well. Thank you so much for the recipe. I use gluten free flour and I don’t cook with oil so I steam the veggies and cook it on parchment paper. Again thank you sooooo much.
Absolutely the best! We make your Tofu “Egg” Foo Yung on a regular basis — and use the leftovers for St. Paul Sandwiches (grew up in St. Louis, so it’s a dish we crave). Thanks so much!
So glad to hear you like it! It’s one of my favorite tofu recipes too! :-)