Seen Jook, Foo Jook, soya bean derivatives

[hzrt8w]

At dim sum, I ordered some 鲜竹卷 Seen Jook Guen [Cantonese] (steamed ground pork in soya-bean wraps). One of my extended family members (American born) asked me what "Seen Jook" 鲜竹 is. Well... here is a quick 101 about "Jook".

The Chinese name for these things uses the word "Jook" 竹 as in Bamboo. But the product really has nothing to do with bamboos. Instead, the word "Jook" 粥 as in congee should have been used because that's how they are made.

Have you ever had a bowl of congee (or Jook [Cantonese]) 粥 and it's steaming hot, so you decided to wait a few minutes before eating it? After a few minutes, the congee surface cools down and a thin membrane has formed. Well, this thin membrane is basically what "Seen Jook" 鲜竹 and "Foo Jook" 腐竹 are.

The main difference is that the grain used to make Seen Jook and Foo Jook is soya bean, not rice. Soya beans are grounded with water to create a puree, then it's boiled in a big pot so it becames congee. When the pot cools, the surface membrane starts to form. Workers would pick up the membrane with a stick and hang it up to dry. And the process repeats...

The first few layers of membrane are the best ones. Because they are very soft and don't become brittle. They are called "Seen Jook" 鲜竹, which is used mostly as wrappers in dim sum dishes such as "Seen Jook Guen" 鲜竹卷.

The next few layers of membrane are of a lesser grade. They harden and become very brittle when they dry. They are called "Foo Jook" 腐竹, which is used in many recipes such as in soups, congees, sweet concoction and such. Foo Jook tastes a little plain by itself but it adds a trace of the soya bean taste and some sheet-like texture to a dish.

Then comes the next few layers of membrane. They get thicker and sweeter. These are called "Gee Jook" 枝竹 probably because they form like twigs when dried. Gee Jook is a little bit chewy and must be soaked in water until soft (a few hours) before using for cooking. It is used mostly in stew recipes such as lamb stew, and some Chinese vegetarian dishes (e.g. Budda's feast).

The bottom layers are very thick and sweet. These are called "Teem Jook" 甜竹. ("Teem" in Cantonese means sweet.) It is very sweet, very chewy (almost rubber like). It is the least expensive grade, and is used in vegetarian dishes.

You can find all 4 types of soya bean sheets in Asian grocery markets. "Seen Jook" are kept in refrigerators. The other three are packaged in plastic bags in the dried food section.

[Gary Soup]

At dim sum, I ordered some 鲜竹卷 Seen Jook Guen [Cantonese] (steamed ground pork in soya-bean wraps).  One of my extended family members (American born) asked me what "Seen Jook" 鲜竹 is.  Well... here is a quick 101 about "Jook".

Your "jook sing" relative could learn something from some schoolkids in Westport, Connecticut:

Visit to a Doufu Factory

What you call "seen jook" is "sanbian fuzhu" in Mandarin (my wife calls it "doufu bi") and the stuff commonly sold in sticks, and fitting your description of "gee jook" is called "fuzhu"). I'm not sure what your "foo jook" is.

The thickest doufu "sheets" that I am familiar with is "baiye." This requires a lot of technological intervention, as the kids from Connecticut found out. I don't know if this relates to your "teem jook" at all or not.

My wife uses the "seen jook" (doufu bi) quite a bit and the "baiye" even more. The versatile "baiye" sheets, in fact, are very widely used in Shanghainese home cooking, usually cut into fetuccini type strips and braised with meat or veggies, or tied into figure 8 shapes or just plain knots and used in soups and braised dishes.

[Gary Soup]

More processed doufu madness, from a 2002 San Francisco Chronicle article:

The Hidden World of Tofu

Chef Nei', shown in one of the pictures, by the way, attracts customers willing to pay $50 to $150 per seat at one of his "Chef's choice" banquets of home-style Shanghainese food at his hole-in-the-wall restaurant. He uses a lot of doufu.

Edited July 11, 2004 by Gary Soup (log)

[hzrt8w]

More processed doufu madness, from a 2002 San Francisco Chronicle article:

The Hidden World of Tofu

Great links Gary, thanks.

From the picture, I only found 2/3 items which are related to my original topic.

#1 Tofu film and tofu skin, they are either Seen Jook [Cantonese] or Foo Jook [Cantonese]. The difference between them is Foo Jook is brittle and needs to be soaked in water before use. Seen Jook is very soft. Couldn't tell from the picture which one it is.

#9 Fried tofu steaks = "Gee Jook"

[Jeannie]

This isn't really a soya bean derivative exactly, but in Shanghai for breakfast you can have this tofu soup called tofu flowers (dofu hua) which are the most tenderest "young" tofus cooked in a hot savoury broth to which you can add chillli oil, spring onions, pickled vegetables and dried shrimp. I absollutely ADORE this and can eat bowlfuls all day.

Does anyone else eat dofu hua like this? I ask because once we saw it advertised in a cafe in Chinatown here in London and we got quite excited. My mum ordered a bowl and poured chilli oil over it to the consternation of the waitress. We didn't realise why until we had a taste and it turned out that the dofu hua was cold and sweet! we deduced that in HK and Canton this is served as a desert and not a breakfast/savoury snack. Is this the case?

Does anyone else eat it like the Shanghainese do?

[Gary Soup]

Does anyone else eat dofu hua like this?

I love doufu hua, also known as doufu nao ("brains"). Next to our apartment complex in Jinqiao, an impromptu "food court" springs up every day, with different vendors preparing different specialties. A hearty breafast of fiery doufu hua, deliciously greasy shengjian bao, and great congyoubing (scallion pancakes) costs about US $1.00 for two. I'll live like a king in retirement!

[Ben Hong]

Dou fu fa is eaten warm, freshly scooped out of a wooden vat at the larger dimsum places. Usually a simple syrup is poured over the top before it is consumed. It is heaven in a bowl. Of course I have added a Canadian twist to the dessert and used maple syrup instead of simple syrup to silken doufu which is readily available now. Bliss.

[Gary Soup]

Dou fu fa is eaten warm, freshly scooped out of a wooden vat at the larger dimsum places. Usually a simple syrup is poured over the top before it is consumed. It is heaven in a bowl. Of course I have added a Canadian twist to the dessert and used maple syrup instead of simple syrup to silken doufu which is readily available now. Bliss.

And people accuse Shanghainese of having the sweet tooth!

Do you put maple syrup on cheung fun too?

[Ben Hong]

Maple syrup on cheung fun? Perish the thought *sniff*. There is a limit to where this old heretic will go

[Dejah]

Dou fu fa is eaten warm, freshly scooped out of a wooden vat at the larger dimsum places. Usually a simple syrup is poured over the top before it is consumed. It is heaven in a bowl. Of course I have added a Canadian twist to the dessert and used maple syrup instead of simple syrup to silken doufu which is readily available now. Bliss.

Ooooooooooooooooo I remember those big wooden vats...The vendor used this special paddle and "sliced" slabs of dofu fa into your bowl...drizzle the syrup on top. Some like to stir all that up, I like to spoon up a chunk of dofu..then dip my spoon to let some of the syrup float around the dofu fa, then into my mouth!

I kinda like the almond flavoured silken dofu fa available in stores now. Don't care much for the mango or peach flavoured ones.

[hzrt8w]

Does anyone else eat dofu hua like this?  I ask because once we saw it advertised in a cafe in Chinatown here in London and we got quite excited.  My mum ordered a bowl and poured chilli oil over it to the consternation of the waitress.  We didn't realise why until we had a taste and it turned out that the dofu hua was cold and sweet!  we deduced that in HK and Canton this is served as a desert and not a breakfast/savoury snack.  Is this the case?

Does anyone else eat it like the Shanghainese do?

Yes Cantonese, or should I say Hong Kongers to be safe, eat dofu hua sweet -- usually in a sweet syrup or sprinkle some white sugar on top. It could be dessert or just a snack. Many people consume a bowl of dofu hua on the street while they want to take a break from shopping for example. It is served both warm or cold. I like mine hot off the kitchen in winter days, and chilled in summer days.

I do realize, from my travels in mainland China, that people eat dofu hua differently "up north" (okay, just north of GuangDong). For example, I ate a bowl of dofu hua in TiWu (near HangZhou) warm with soy sauce added. This is the first time I heard Shanghainese like to add chili oil to this dish. Interesting. Sure would make it taste different.

Edited July 12, 2004 by hzrt8w (log)

[hzrt8w]

Ooooooooooooooooo I remember those big wooden vats...The vendor used this special paddle and "sliced" slabs of dofu fa into your bowl...

I kinda like the almond flavoured silken dofu fa available in stores now. Don't care much for the mango or peach flavoured ones.

What I remember from childhood memory is the vendor scoop dofu hua with paper-thin round scoop made of brass.

Dejah: I think the "almond flavoured silken dofu fa available in stores, especially some have mango or peach flavors" are not dofu fa. They are almond jello, made from gelatin.

To add some thoughts: some people (such as me) like to eat dofu hua in as big a piece as possible (because it breaks up very easily). While some people, such as my in-laws, like to break up the dofu hua into tiny little fragments with a spoon before eating it.

[Dejah]

hzrt8w: Dejah: I think the "almond flavoured silken dofu fa available in stores, especially some have mango or peach flavors" are not dofu fa. They are almond jello, made from gelatin.

The ones sold in Superstore are definitely dofu...I used to make the almond jelly for the restaurant when dofu fa wasn't available. The customers liked to eat it with fruit cocktail, not fresh fruit but canned fruit!

[Hest88]

I hate dou fu fa, basically because I hate anything with sugar syrup. I think it's as much due to the texture of the stuff than the flavor. (Someday I'll tell you about my horrible experience with Gui Ling Gao-- that herbal turtle jelly stuff.)

Fou jook, though, is one of my favorite things. I like the flavor but I also really like that somewhat chewy texture.

[Ben Hong]

Wow, "hate" is a pretty strong word/emotion when applied to such an innocuous and deliciously inoffensive dish. Maybe you should try the chili sauce instead of syrup. Sooo, I gather that you don't like pancakes or crepes either, then.

[hzrt8w]

The ones sold in Superstore are definitely dofu...I used to make the almond jelly for the restaurant when dofu fa wasn't available. The customers liked to eat it with fruit cocktail, not fresh fruit but canned fruit!

Dejah: hmmmm... I have not seen that before in our Asian markets. I wonder if this would be a regional thing. I live in Sacramento, California. Which region do you live in? I want to be on the look out for it. How do they package that almond dofu fa? Is it like regular dofu fa in some round cylindrical plastic container with a loose cap? Is it sold in the dofu section? Refrigerated?

[Ben Hong]

One of the big supermarket chains has almond dou fu fa in sealed 8 oz. square plastic containers, selling @ Cdn$1.50. Actually it is silken doufu, which is one and the same I suppose.

[trillium]

The ones sold in Superstore are definitely dofu...I used to make the almond jelly for the restaurant when dofu fa wasn't available. The customers liked to eat it with fruit cocktail, not fresh fruit but canned fruit!

Dejah: hmmmm... I have not seen that before in our Asian markets. I wonder if this would be a regional thing. I live in Sacramento, California. Which region do you live in? I want to be on the look out for it. How do they package that almond dofu fa? Is it like regular dofu fa in some round cylindrical plastic container with a loose cap? Is it sold in the dofu section? Refrigerated?

The ones I've seen are from Canada. They're Sunshine or some other close to that named brand. They're sold in the same refrigerated place as the regular tofu products but they have their own spot on the shelf.

regards,

trillium

edit to add: they're sold in a similiar package to the regular tofu, plastic rectangular carton on the bottom, thick, transparent cellophane type stuff on the top, with name and info printed on it.

Edited July 12, 2004 by trillium (log)

[Hest88]

Wow, "hate" is a pretty strong word/emotion when applied to such an innocuous and deliciously inoffensive dish. Maybe you should try the chili sauce instead of syrup.

Sorry, but "hate" is really what I mean. You're right, though, it's definitely not *just* about the texture, 'cause I love maple syrup. It's something about the combination of the flavor and texture that makes me gag. I'm sure I'm not the only one with food issues that are incomprehensible to others. What's innocuous or deliciously inoffensive to you is definitely offensive to me.