A Step By Step, If Not Somewhat Imprecise, Method For Making Yuba Fish

Even when yuba (tofu skin) sheets are just resting in a bowl, they look like flesh, and when you buy them dried and soak them, sitting there in the slightly yellowed water, they look like they could be a display at the Mutter Museum. But this is the start of making a yuba fish. After soaking the dried sheets overnight, I've drained most of the water out of them.

Here the yuba sheets have been chopped into small flakes. How small? As small as I could get them with out being frustrated by how slippery the little devils are. My food processor was too small to do any thing with them as whole sheets, but I imagine that if I were to chop, then process, I could get a few busts in to make them smaller if I thought that smaller flakes was important enough. Put aside several whole sheets of yuba for the fish skin later.

Another option, as seen above, if you're soy intolerant, or avoiding soy for any number of reasons, is to make the yuba fish using mushrooms, purchased insanely cheaply from the local Korean market. Here we have oyster mushrooms and a black, crunchy-chewy thing that I've only heard called fungus. These I put through the food processor, several quick pulses and then put them into the bowl to season them. The seasonings are the same for the yuba sheets as they are for the mushroom alternative. They are:

6 Tbs cornstarch

3 Tbs mushroom bullion

1 1/2 Tbs sesame oil

1 Tbs of diced lemongrass might be nice, or ginger 

These are all mixed in a bowl together with the diced mushrooms or diced yuba sheets.

Here you can see a full sheet of yuba with one of two of the sheets of nori laid out on it. The nori is put together lengthwise, and the moisture from the yuba makes the nori malleable -- ready for rolling. With a brush, spread a mixture of one part water and one part cornstarch over the sheets of nori. Take two cups of the stuffing (the diced, seasoned mixture) and put in the center, then spread it out. 

The stuffing is rolled into the skin into log-like... well, um rolls. Above , you can see one of the logs cut into halves to fit into my rice cooker / steamer, where it is steamed for twenty minutes. The filling plumps up a bit, the outer layer of yuba becomes transluscent, and the end result resembles a real fish.

Here you can slice off pieces horizontally and fry them in oil until the surface is browned and the skin bubbles a bit. Add sauce and serve on a plate, or what I did for the week after Sunday dinner is wrap it in a tortilla with peanut sauce, kehl, red leaf lettuce and chard for a quick lunch or dinner.

This sauce was made throwing many of the fruits that were in my CSA. The fish can be a strong flavor, so I tried using sweet, tangy flavors to balance it out. In this skillet: 2 peaches, 1 red bell pepper, lime juice, lemongrass, water, 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. To finish, simmer until the fruit softens and then put through a food processor. Another options is making a gravy of onions, garlic, lime juice and some veggie broth thickened with a bit of flour and some cornstarch, or if you prefer just cornstarch.