tan san

Another of my maternal grandmother's recipes that I manage to obtain from her is that of "tan san". Frankly speaking, I do not know the English (nor Mandarin!) name for this snack. It is essentially a fried snack made from plain flour and preserved red beancurd ("foo joo").

My grandmother's version of "tan san" is the savoury version. You may have come across the sweet version being sold at snack stalls just before Chinese New Year. My mother's eldest sister uses the sweet version of the "tan san" in her home-made vegetarian yee sang. The recipe in this post is that of my grandmother's recipe.

Ingredients

1 egg (beaten)

1 cube of preserved red beancurd

200g plain flour

oil (for frying)

Method

1. Mash the preserved red beancurd.

2. Add the beaten egg and mix well.

3. Fold in the flour using a metal spoon. Mix into a dough.

4. Roll out the dough and cut each "tan san" into diamond shape.

5. Using a chopstick, poke a hole in the centre of each "tan san" and pass one sharp end of the "tan san" through the centre of the hole until it is fully through.

6. Fry the "tan san" until it is golden brown.

7. Drain the excess oil from the fried "tan san".

8. Let the fried "tan san" cool down.

9. Store the "tan san" in an air-tight container.

Tip

If you prefer the sweet version of the "tan san", you can add 1 cup of toasted sesame seeds and 1 cup of fine sugar to the egg and bean curd mixture before you fold in the plain flour.