Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps

Kevin and I are always craving PF Chang’s Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps, so I started searching the internet to see if anyone had discovered the recipe. I found the following recipe from Courier-Journal.com. The only adjustments I made were omitting the Oyster sauce and replacing the Tofu with Tempeh. Oh, I forgot, I couldn’t find Cellophane noodles so I used crunchy rice noodles instead.

P.F. CHANG'S VEGETARIAN LETTUCE WRAPS (copycat recipe) (4 servings)

The cooking sauce is from the meat recipe but is enough for two batches of the veggie version so go ahead and make the full recipe and reserve half for another batch. Save in a jar and store in the fridge until needed. **I used all the sauce for one block of Tempeh.

FOR THE COOKING SAUCE:

1 tablespoon hoisin sauce

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon dry sherry

2 tablespoon oyster sauce

2 tablespoon. water

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoon cornstarch

FOR THE MARINADE:

1 teaspoon cornstarch

2 teaspoon dry sherry

2 teaspoon soy sauce

2 teaspoon water

FOR THE TOFU OR TEMPEH MIXTURE:

1 cup baked tofu, diced

2 tablespoon peanut oil plus 1 Tbsp. sesame oil, mixed

1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic

1 Tbsp. Chinese chili sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 green onions, minced

1/2 small or 1/4 large red onion, minced

1/2 can bamboo shoots, diced (buy the canned strips)

1/2 can water chestnuts, diced

TO SERVE:

Cellophane noodles, prepared according to package directions

Iceberg or green leaf lettuce

SPICY SAUCE (optional)

1 teaspoon rice vinegar

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon dry mustard (e.g., Coleman's)

1 tablespoon water

1 teaspoon Chinese chili sauce

In small dish, mix the dry mustard and water until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Set aside.

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TO MAKE THE COOKING SAUCE: Mix the cooking sauce in a bowl and set aside.

TO MAKE THE MARINADE: In medium bowl, combine sherry, soy sauce, chili sauce, sesame oil, cornstarch, and water. Mix well.

TO PREPARE THE TOFU/TEMPEH: Stir tofu into the marinade. Allow to marinate for 15 minutes. Tempeh: Chop into small pieces then marinate.

Heat wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mixed oil and stir fry tofu for 2-3 minutes. Set aside.

Add the ginger, garlic and onion; stir-fry for about a minute.

Add bamboo shoots and water chestnuts; stir-fry for another 2 minutes.

Return tofu to wok/skillet. Add cooking sauce and cook until thickened (about 2 minutes).

TO SERVE: Place prepared cellophane noodles onto a platter. Pour tofu mixture over them and serve with lettuce and Spicy Sauce.